We Are All Made of Stars
by MeganBellaRoseBlack
Summary: Alex Price is thrilled that her relationship with Gene is going from strength to strength despite their heated arguments and misunderstandings. For a while, everything seems to be turning out perfectly for her, but secrets and revelations soon begin to shatter her happiness. And this time the arguments are a little closer to home. Sequel to We Are Young.
1. We Are All Made Of Stars

__**A/n So here it is! It starts out as quite a fluffy little fic, so enjoy it while it lasts ;) **

**Kudos to my looovelllyyy CalamityElle for batting around the ideas with and EmmyLou1983 for beta'ing. **

**I hope you're all happy to see this one back, and if you have a moment, reviews are pure love! **

**As always... Enjoy! **

**MBRB'xoxo**

_People they come together_

_And people they fall apart._

_Noone can stop us now,_

_Cos we are all made of stars._

**_We Are All Made of Stars - Moby_**

'Happy Birthday!' Alex yelled, holding her arms up for a hug, a gift bag hanging from one hand and a patterned night bag in her other hand containing all her things.  
'Thank you, lovely!' Annie squealed, accepting the hug immediately and beaming over her friends shoulder.  
'How was it?' Annie's birthday had actually been the previous day - Thursday - but it wasn't the most convenient of days to have a party on and so she had spent her 18th with her parents and had arranged a fancy dress night out for the next evening. Her parents had gone away for the night leaving the house to her and her friends with the order of her having a good time and ensuring nothing got broken which she had gladly agreed to and told everyone that they were staying at hers that evening.  
'Yeah, really good actually. We just went for a meal and stuff. Nothing amazing, but it was nice' Alex nodded and then held out her hand with the gift bag to Annie.  
'Ohh thank you! You didn't have to' Annie told her, seeming genuinely surprised that Alex had brought her a present. Alex rolled her eyes with a small laugh.  
'Everyone says that but secretly they're like 'gimme the gifts'' Annie giggled and shook her head.  
'Leave me up here alone. Why not. Don't blame me when all the drink's gone!' The Essex accent floated down the stairs just before the face of Shaz appeared over the banister, grinning down at the girls in the hallway. They both looked up to see her and then Alex obeyed Annie's instruction of 'Come on' and followed her up the stairs and towards her bedroom where loud music was already blast from.

As Alex dropped her bag on the bedroom floor and crossed her legs beneath her on the bed, she looked Shaz up and down who was staring into the mirror and applying more product to her hair. She looked amazing in a lipstick red dress coupled with a black bolero style jacket. Her makeup was heavy; blusher sharply angled and eyes as smokey as Mr Robinson himself. She was the absolutely perfect New Romantic and Alex couldn't help but admire her costume.  
'Shaz, you look amazing' she told her and Shaz turned from the mirror, clearly pleased.  
'Aww, cheers Ma'am' Alex gave a playful frown at the new nickname that she'd been given since being with Gene. Apparently anyone that was with the Guv was their 'leader' as well, but as Chris had pointed out, 'Boss' didn't seem right for Alex and so she had been tarred with the brush of 'Ma'am'. She had been wrong when she had assumed it would wear off quickly. Very wrong indeed.  
Annie, eager to open her present, waiting for the exchange to finish impatiently, bouncing up and down next to Alex on the bed.  
'Open it then' she told her, turning away from Shaz who had now come to kneel down at Annie's feet, wanting to know what Alex had got Annie almost as much as Annie herself did. In the bag was one neatly wrapped, flat box and another bigger box. With a little 'eek', Annie tore the paper off the flat one and opened the box. Inside was a long black chain with a large, chunky silver peace sigh pendant. Annie squealed as she took it out the box and after looking at it a little closer, she hung it around her neck. The pendant hung perfectly against her 70s inspired mini dress, the silver standing out against the multi-coloured material.  
'It's perfect!' Annie beamed, looking up at Alex. 'Thank you' Alex nodded as Shaz took a closer look.  
'I thought it'd be good for tonight, but I know how you love all that 70's stuff anyway, so you can wear it whenever' Annie nodded happily as one hand traced the metal of the peace sign and the other picked up the other box. As she ripped open the wrapping, she laughed and gave Alex a happy smile and then turned the box to Shaz who had been craning to see what it was that Alex had got her.

'Brilliant!' she laughed, looking at the front of Annie's new cocktail maker and 'how to' book.

'Well you can't have an 18th birthday without a cocktail maker' Alex explained and Annie gave an 'of course not' of agreement as she leant over to give her friend a thank you hug.

'Thank you, darling' she said into her ear happily, then pulled back looking disapprovingly at Alex's state of Alexness. 'You'd better get changed, missy. Don't think that just because you brought me presents I'm going to let you off dressing up!' Alex brought a hand up in front of her mouth and in mock scandal.

'Me? Not dress up? I'd rather _die'_ Shaz laughed and Annie rolled her eyes at her friend, pulling a head piece out of her bag.

'Shut up and get changed, Queeney' she said, throwing the headpiece at Alex's face and turning to finish of her makeup.

x-x-x-x

A while later and the three girls were making their way to Club 32 where they were meeting the rest of their friends. Phyllis had refused to tell them what it was that she was going to be dressed and despite their best efforts, she had remained solid and so they were all looking forward to finding out what the mystery costume actually was. Alex had explained to Annie that although she had tried her best, she had failed her 'mission' of getting Gene to dress up. Secretly, Alex was a bit disappointed that she hadn't been about to convince Gene to go in fancy dress - she had been looking forward to him being her King for the night - but she couldn't say that she was surprised. Gene wasn't one to show much enthusiasm for making himself look like a fool and so he had been Annie's only exception to the 'thou must dress up' rule. Ray had been unsure as to what he was going to come as, but they all knew what Sam and Chris were going to be due to Annie and Shaz sorting them out. As they made their way to the club, there seemed to be a plethora of people who were all wanting to wish Annie a happy birthday and even more that the girls spotted in fancy dress. The FaceBook event that Annie had created had picked up quite a few accepters and it hadn't surprised Alex at all - Annie was pretty popular due to her easy going and kind nature and judging by the amount of people that were out and about in their costumes, it was going to be a busy night.

Alex couldn't help but laugh along with Annie and Shaz as they walked up to the entrance of the club where the group were sat outside on the Ray and Gene were missing but the girls attention was more focused Sam and Chris who looked amazing in their costumes that the girls had sorted; Sam looking particularly dapper in his 70s boy costumes complete with black leather jacket, flared jeans and shirt with lapels that almost reached his shoulders. Chris looked just a little too comfortable in his New Romantic costume but his tone came out a little nervous as he looked at Shaz.

'Do I look alright, Shazza?' he asked. Shaz grinned as she came closer to him and turned his face towards her more with one hand so that she could inspect the makeup she had shown him how to do. The black that surrounded one of his eyes seemed to her satisfaction and she nodded happily.

'Fab!' she told him, smiling. Alex wasn't sure if Shaz noticed the blush that crept up into Chris's cheeks at the her approval, but she decided that it was very sweet of him. As Sam sat down and offered his lap to Annie, Phyllis moved over a little and trod the rest of her cigarette into the floor.

'So when're you two going to cut the crap and get together?' she asked the couple who were sat shoulder to shoulder. The question had crossed Alex's mind numerous times as she had observed the pair skirting around each other. There was a clear attraction but neither of them had admitted it and so they were still officially single even though most people just assumed that they were together because of how close they were. Going to a fancy dress party in complimentary New Romantic gear didn't exactly scream hate, did it. Alex could see that they were reluctant to answer the question, Shaz shifting awkwardly in her seat, and so she decided to turn the attention away from them for a minute.

'What are you then, Phyl? Cavegirl?' Phyllis looked semi-amused, semi-appalled.

'Shut it, you. I'm Jane. Looking for my Tarzan' it was the saucy, suggestive wink that she gave that cracked Alex up. It wasn't until her phone started ringing that she actually managed to hold back her laughter.

'Hello?' she rolled her eyes as Gene's phone voice boomed into her ear, nearly deafening her.

'Alright Madam Nutter? Where're you?'

'I'm by the door. Where're you?'

'I'm just down the road. Why're you laughing?' Alex had let out a burst of laughter as Ray came into view, his lopsided, cocky smile firmly in place and a piece of gum in his mouth. She hadn't expected him to make much of an effort with his costume but she had to admit that he looked pretty good. She didn't know where the hell he got it from, but his outfit was unmistakably a pirate, complete with eye patch and pirate boots that were folded down at the top. Annie seemed thrilled at his effort too, standing up from Sams lap and giving him a hug.

'Happy birthday, love. Might wanna let go though or Sammy won't have a girlfriend anymore' he shot Sam one of his cheeky winks over Annie's shoulder as she let go of him and slapped his arm lightly.

'Just Ray' Alex explained. Where did you say you were?'

'Just down the road. Come meet me' it was more of a demand than a request and Alex considered telling him where he could shove his orders, but she knew that she would end up meeting him where he wanted her to anyway and so settled for an eye roll and an overly heavy sigh.

'Fine. See you in a minute' She hung up the phone without saying goodbye and then told her friends that she'd be back in a minute.

'You lot go in. We won't be long' she grumbled, making her way away from the group and down the road to where she knew Gene would be.

x-x-x-x

_Where the hell are you, you pain in the arse? xxx_

She could feel the warmth that the drink she had consumed provided wearing off steadily and she had walked further than she had expected to in her search for Gene. It was pretty dark out and she wasn't really keen on walking much further on her own. Deep in her own semi-annoyed thoughts, she didn't hear the footsteps behind her. Her hands were suddenly pulled from her sides where they had been and clasped together at her back by one large hand, another landing on her shoulder to steady her.

'Stop in the name of the law.' She could have killed him. Turning her head quickly to shoot an angry look at Gene, the words died on her tongue as she saw Gene, yes, but not the Gene that she had expected. Instead she saw Gene Hunt, _her _Gene Hunt, dressed in a black shirt and black trousers with large aviator glasses over his eyes, a cop hat pulled low on his head and a pair of handcuffs swinging at his hip.

'Oh... my god' was all that came from Alex as her jaw dropped open slightly. Gene let her wrists go and pushed them into his back pockets and therefore pushing his chest out an his shoulders back a little. Needless to say, his pout was firmly in place.

'What happened to you not dressing up?' she asked him, looking him up and down again and again.

'If someone nags you enough, Price, then there comes a point when all you want is a quiet life' Alex raised an eyebrow.

'Is that so?' she asked him slyly.

'Don't you even think about keeping that up whenever you don't get your own way' he warned her, but he knew it was falling on deaf ears and anyway, it was a bit of a lie. He had intended to dress up from the minute he'd heard about it if only to surprise everyone. He knew that noone would think that he, the Guv, would actually _dress up_ but he had decided that he would prove them wrong and it had been more than amusing to hear Alex practically beg him to dress up with her. But he had drawn the line at being her Anthony. Before him stood one hell of a beautiful Cleopatra and although he could appreciate her as the Egyptian Queen, he wasn't too keen on the idea of dressing up as an ancient Egyptian and following the queen of the Nile around all night. Looking down at her now, she had straightened her hair and brushed the fringe that she normally clipped out of her face down so that it made the typical heavy Cleopatra fringe, her eyes had been carefully made up by Shaz so that they were Cleopatra's signature dark flicks. She was wearing a short, loose plain white dress that brushed her thighs, brought in at the waist with a brown waist belt so that it looked like a sort of toga style dress. It wasn't the most masterful of costumes but she was most definitely the Ancient Queen and absolutely gorgeous. Gene glanced around them at the empty street that they were in and then wrapped his arms around the back of her waist, pulling her to him and dropping a soft kiss on her lips which she gratefully welcomed and returned.

As they pulled apart, Alex traced one hand lightly down the side of Gene's face, looking into the reflection of his aviators and laughing.

'Those are so distracting' she told him, tapping them twice. Gene batted her hands away and pouted.

'Oi, you leave them alone or I'll throw you in the cells for the night' Alex raised one eyebrow suggestively at his threat and then winked.

'Is that a promise?' her voice was low and Gene couldn't help but giving her the tiniest of smiles. It wasn't everyday that Cleopatra came on to you.

'Anyway. I think we'd better take a slow scroll back' she told him. At her words, Gene looked at her strangely thinking that it was just a slip of the tongue but her clear attempt at trying to hold back her laughter suggested otherwise.

'Scroll?'

'Get it? Scroll. Egypt?' Gene shook his head in what seemed to be an appalled manner and began the walk back towards the club, Alex looking overly pleased with herself.

'That was absolutely awful' he told her flatly. Alex just looped her arm through his and leant her head against his shoulder as they walked.

'It wasn't. You're in De Nile' there was a beat of silence after she spoke and then she couldn't hold back the bubble of laughter forming in her stomach any longer and she burst out laughing, clutching onto a very unimpressed Gene's arm. As they continued to walk, Gene had the feeling that he'd need quite a few drinks tonight. Alex's laughter eventually died away and a moment of silence surrounded them before;

'There's a Pharaoh few more where that came from, Guv' and the silence was shattered by her hysterical laughter once again and Gene's eye roll which was so big it could, very nearly, be heard.

_TBC... _


	2. I'll Be That

**An. So I'm back at college again now and so updates won't be as frequent as they were with We Are Young, but I'll try my very very best to keep them coming! **

**Please let me know your thoughts on this little chapter if you have a moment! It's always SO appreciated! **

**Enjoy! **

**MBRB'xoxo**

_The sun in the morning ki__ssing your skin,_  
_A blanket at night t__hat you're wrapped up in,_  
_Your lover,_  
_That one best friend,_  
_I'll be that,_  
_I'll be that._

_The one that will s__tand and fight for you,_  
_A safe place you can run to_  
_The truth in the words "I do",_  
_I'll be that to you._**  
**

_**I'll Be That - Jimmy Wayne**  
_

With one arm linked through Gene's and the other placed lightly on his forearm, Alex tried to not laugh hysterically as she watched her feet stumble over each other. The amount of alcohol that she had consumed coupled with her rather high heels were making for some interesting walking and although she was used to her heeled boots and comfy day heels, stilettos were a whole other story. Stopping abruptly, she pulled Gene to a halt beside her and then leant on him a little more, lifting one foot and removing one of the offending shoes. Gene, saying nothing, gave her a slightly disapproving look which didn't go unnoticed by Alex.

'Don't give me that look, Guv. I know, I know. I hate girls that take their shoes off but you don't understand, Gene. _You don't understand'_ Her stage whisper and giggle that followed it caused him to raise one of his eyebrows in scepticism. He had heard Alex, many times, moan about girls that got drunk and the tottered home with their shoes dangling from one hand and now here she was with her white heels in her hand and her feet bare, wincing with each step. It seemed to him that teenage girls just liked to have something to bitch about and said bitching was forgotten as soon as they'd had a drink. She let go of his arm and jogged forward - letting out little hisses of pain - to where Annie was talking to Shaz and Sam. Sam had had more than he usually did to drink due to it being his girlfriends birthday and so the three were appearing to have quite a merry little time discussing the evening that they had had so far.

'But he was so sweet! He didn't have to buy me all those drinks!' Annie was cooing. Shaz nodded with agreement.

'Yeahhhh. But it _is_ your birthday' Shaz reminded her, pointing rather enthusiastically to reiterate her point.

'But how did he _know?!_' Annie wondered. Sam, seemingly knowing this answer, pocked Annie in the chest where her '18 TODAY' badge sat.

'You have a badge! I got it for you because it's your birthday' he reminded her and Annie seemed to remember her flashing badge and grinned.

'Thank you, darling' she beamed at him, leaning forward to peck his lips happily. Alex jabbed Annie quickly on the sides of her stomach making her jump and then began a cheery rendition of 'Happy Birthday' which was quickly picked up by the rest of the teens.

Chris made his way to Genes side and watched his group of singing friends for a second before turning to Gene.

'Had a good night, Guv?' he asked, his words slurring a little. Gene glanced at him out of the corner of his eye momentarily and thought about the night so far.

'Yeah, not been bad. You?' Chris gave him a splitting smile and blushed slightly.

'Yeah, really good. Don't tell anyone Guv...' he paused and Gene looked at him with interest. 'Shazza kissed me' he whispered to him, clearly thrilled. Gene gave him a small smile, genuinely pleased for him. Chris was a bit of a daft bugger, but him and Shaz clearly deserved each other and the sickening puppy look on Chris's face was how he (secretly) felt when he was with Alex - anyone that gave you that feeling was special. Gene raised one hand and brought it heavily down on Chris's back, toppling him over a little.

'Well done, Christopher. Looks like there's a bird who doesn't think you're a twonk after all' he told him and Chris looked at the ground a little shyly. The round of 'Hip hip horrays' ended just as they reached Annie's house. Fumbling with the key, she eventually got the door open and Gene looked behind him quickly to make sure that Phyllis and Ray were still there. The pair had been walking together and chatting ever since they had left the Club. If he was honest, he thought that there was something a little more going on between those two but who would ever know? Too stubborn for their own good, they were. The thought that he was being a bit hypocritical there crossed his mind fleetingly, but he quickly dismissed it and made his way into the Cartwrights house and slipped a hand around Alex's waist who had waited for him in the hallway as the rest of the group had piled into the kitchen.

x-x-x-x

'Does anyone want a drink?' Annie asked brightly, turning away from the wine rack with a bottle in each hand. The general consensus was that yes,_ everyone_ wanted a drink. As Alex turned the Ipod dock on and began to play some music, Annie made a collection of bottles and glasses on the bar-style table for people to drink what they wanted and then grabbed a pair of glasses for her and Sam, pouring some vodka into each and topping up with lemonade. Alex made her way back over to where Gene was sat on one of the barstools and leant against him with her back to his chest and his chin rested on her shoulder in a surprising display of affection.

'Want a drink?' he asked her. Alex nodded.

'I sphinx so' she told him and then laughed as he tutted and pushed her away from him jokingly.

Time slipped by them as they staying in the kitchen, drinking and talking away the early hours of the morning. At one point, food was mentioned and so Shaz made an attempt at frying some bacon which, although not great by usual standards, went down a treat to the drunkards. Eventually, with a drink in her hand, Annie suggested that they do something and that playing games would be a brilliant idea.

'Well what do you want to play?' Sam asked. Phyllis shrugged and Gene looked pretty unimpressed that they were playing games at all.

'I don't know' Annie frowned, slipping her arms around Sam and resting her head on his shoulder, watching the empty bottle that Alex was spinning absentmindedly.

'Spin the bottle?!' she suddenly asked, still watching the bottle spin around on the table. Shaz nodded her agreement immediately and Alex laughed.

'Seriously?' she asked doubtfully. She had always considered spin the bottle to be a bit of a ridiculous game designed for 12 year olds who wanted their first kiss or drunk-out-of-their-mind-students. But, then again, isn't that pretty much what they were? 'Whatever, I don't mind' she shrugged, looking around to see what everyone else thought of the idea. The rest of them seemed to be up for it, nodding.

'We'll play in the living room. It's comfier' she declared, grabbing the bottle from Alex's hand and her drink with the other and leading the way into her living room. The group followed her and settled themselves on the floor around the coffee table.

'Shaz. You first' Annie declared and Shaz smiled then took another sip of her drink for that little bit more confidence. As she took the bottle and began to spin it, Alex leant against Gene and absent mindedly traced circles on his knee. His hand slipped around her and landed firmly on her hip, pulling her a little closer to him in the way that she absolutely loved. It always made her feel so loved by him and his sheer strength gave her such a sense of being protected and being cared for which never failed to put a soft smile on her lips.

The group watched the bottle as it span and Shaz let out a small nervous giggle as it slowed just before it stopped, it's neck pointing at Alex. Ray rubbed his hands together leeringly and Annie slapped him lightly on the shoulder which made them both laugh loudly.

'I'm in a relationship!' Alex protested, drunkenly pointing at Gene in case any of them somehow didn't know that she was, infact, dating Gene.

'Don't try and pull that one, Price' Ray told her, shaking his head and taking a gulp of his drink.

'Yeah, we're all friends' added Phyllis from beside him. Alex gave them both a specially formulated glare as she got to her knees and leant towards Shaz who was taking another sip of her drink for courage.

'Pucker up, Ma'am' she laughed and then pecked her lips against Alex's to a wave of wolf whistles and applause.

'Alright, alright' she told them before taking the bottle and spinning it herself. As it landed on Ray, she tried not to laugh through her mock disgust as Ray grinned letcherously at her.

'Sorry, Guv' he told his friend who had one corner of his mouth turned up in a smile as he waved a dismissive hand in Rays direction.

'Go ahead, Raymondo. Be my guest' Alex and Ray shared their kiss and then it was Rays go.

Ray to Annie. Annie to Shaz. Shaz to a delighted looking Chris. Chris to an appalled looking Gene. Gene to Phyllis and the game went on. It was only after everyone had loosened up a little and there were repeat couples forming that it began to get a little more interesting. Chris and Shaz had shared a number of kisses (Alex was beginning to get suspicious as to how Chris was timing the bottle when he span it - the boy was smarter than he looked) and Ray and Phyllis's kisses appeared to be a little too enthusiastic for two people who claimed to be completely uninterested in the other. Gene had point blank refused to kiss and of the boys again after it had landed on Sam for the second time and despite the joking jibes, everyone knew better that to try and force the Guv into something that he had refused to do.

Gene, having received a kiss from Annie, spun the bottle carefully and, oh how surprising, raised an eyebrow at Alex as it landed on her yet again.

'I think there's cheating going on here' Sam scolded at his friend and the laughed as he received a cheery finger from Gene in response.

'Come here then, Cleo' he demanded and Alex gladly did as she was told, leaning forward to meet Gene's lips. The couple kissed enthusiastically, losing themselves in each other as they had done so many times before. Alex's hand wandered up to the back of Gene's head, holding him to her as she felt his hands slip around her waist, pulling her closer. It wasn't until Sam told Gene loudly to 'put the lady down' that they pulled apart, Alex with a shy smile playing on her face.

'I actually need to talk to you if you don't mind, Misses' Gene told her before she had the chance to spin the bottle herself. She raised an eyebrow questioningly and followed him with her eyes as he stood up from the floor and held out a hand to her. Ray gave a low wolf whistle and Annie rolled her eyes.

'Can we please not have sex in my room. Or my parents room' she told them flatly with an overly dramatic sigh.

'Don't worry, Cartwright. I'll make sure to keep her under control' Gene told Annie, indicating the handcuffs that still hung from his hip. Surprisingly, Annie didn't seem very reassured by his words and just looked at Sam as if to say 'tell him' but Sam missed her look due to laughing to much. Alex finally stood up and began to follow Gene out of the room.

'It's your go!' Shaz reminded her. Alex turned back to the group, all eyes on her and let out a small noise of rememberance.

'Don't worry. Chris, you can have my go' she told him. Chris didn't protest and just grabbed the bottle and gave it a spin as Alex and Gene left the room. As they approached the stairs, Alex couldn't help but smirk as she heard Shaz let out a confused 'Why does it always land on me?!' much to the amusement of the others.

'What did you want to 'talk' to me about then?' Alex asked Gene who was a step in front of her. Gene stopped in his tracks and turned, looking down at Alex.

'You'll have to wait and see, won't you' he told her with a wink and his mandatory pout.

'Guv, you're really starting to worry me. I'm _Sheikh_ing' she told him, unable to keep the small hint of laughter out of her voice. Gene stopped again and faced her looking pretty unimpressed.

'I have no idea what you just said, Mistress Nutter, but if that was another pun then you're going to be in big trouble' he warned her, moving his face right in front of hers in a manner that to most other people would probably have been intimidating, but to Alex it was the perfect opportunity to move forward and kiss the tip of his nose gently.

'My genius is wasted on you' she told him, looking up at him through her lashes, a sly smirk on her face and taking the opportunity to check out his arse as he turned and began walking up the stairs once more.

x-x-x-x

Gene sat down on Annie's double bed comfortably and folded his legs underneath him then signalled for Alex to join him which she happily did. She arranged herself so that they were facing each other, knees touching and then lightly dragged a hand down his thigh with one eyebrow raised suggestively. Gene surprised her by placing a hand over hers and stopping her from exploring his body any more.

'I actually did have something I wanted to tell you' he said with amusement in his voice. Alex blinked at him for a second, taking in the serious look that had fallen over his face and then adjusted her body accordingly. She straightened her back so she was completely upright and placed one of her hands on each of her knees and placed a stern, serious expression on her face.

'Okay. Go' she told him in a deeper voice than she usually would have used. Gene paused, trying not to laugh a little. Taking one of her hands and holding it in his, he gave her a crooked half smile.

'I'm not going to tell you that I'm moving to Sweden. You don't have to look _so_ serious' he told her. Alex instantly slumped down again and let out a huffy breath.

'_Geeennne__' _she moaned. 'I was getting in the zone! That was my serious face' she giggled. Gene looked a little sceptical.

'Never do that face again' Laughter trickled from Alex and she lightly slapped his knee that was touching hers and then relaxed once more.

'Okay. Seriously' she gave him a pointed look 'Go. What is it?' Gene seemed to take a moment to collect himself and contemplate what it was that he was going to say and then took a deep breath, paused again and let it out.

'I really like being with you' he told her. Alex, although surprised, waited him to continue. But he didn't.

'I really like being with you too' she said in the hope that it would encourage him to continue, but he didn't.

A heavy silence had settled over them. The strange atmosphere in the room mixed with the lack of social buzz had sobered Alex a little and she could feel the fog in her head clearing as she looked at Gene who looked straight back at her, neither of them saying anything.

'That was it' he told her after a while. All Alex could do was blink at him, a slight crinkle of confusion creasing her forehead. It was, granted, very sweet of Gene to say so and very unexpected, but she had thought that he would have something else after the build up to whatever it was that he had needed to tell her.

'Is that really it?' she laughed lightly, amused that all the fuss had been over the simple words. Gene barely moved and if she hadn't been looking so intently, she would have thought that her words had barely registered with him. But she was looking and instead she saw the flicked of - not hurt exactly. Disappointment? cross his face and she realised that it really _was _all he wanted to say. She let her soft laughter fade away and locked eyes with Gene, waiting for him to make the next move. He did so when he pulled his hand away from where it had been lying on top of hers and sighed.

'Look, Alex. I know that I'm not exactly all hearts and flowers and I don't turn up at your door with bloody kittens and kisses, but I wanted you to know that I still think your pretty okay, even if I can't afford to do all that stuff' his words came out in quite an unGenelike tone, a touch of rejection and a touch of a mumble lacing them. His eyes had dropped from hers and he was staring down at their knees when he gave out a little sigh and brought one hand up to rest his head in, propping it up on his knee. Alex studied the boy in front of her and suddenly felt guilt clawing at her. It slapped her round the face that although it was simple for someone like Pete to say that he liked being with her, it was _far _from simple for Gene. For captain of the rugby team, macho-fronted burly Gene who found it hard to show his sensitive side, saying something that could be interpreted as 'soft' or 'poofy' was as hard for him as it would be for someone like Peter to slay a dragon. But he had tried and Alex had made him feel like it still wasn't good enough. Her expression instantly softened and she reached out for the hand that Gene had his head held in, pulling it to her and effectively getting him to look at her.

'Gene' she started, her voice quiet and tender. 'I'm sorry. I shouldn't have laughed. And it really does mean a lot. I don't _want _you to buy me things. I don't _want _ hearts and flowers and kittens. Believe me, you're enough. Don't ever compare yourself to Pete, okay? There's a reason I'm with you and not him, you know. I don't want someone who thinks he can make an argument up to me by buying spending money' Gene listened to her intently, feeling that little bit more reassured with every word. Alex shifted in front of him, moving so that she was on her knees and leaning closer to him 'And besides, Pete could never make me feel safe. And protected. And he could never pull off a cop outfit' she grinned down at Gene from where she was now slightly knelt above him, a sly smile playing at the corner of her lips and her hand reaching down to pick up the aviators that had been folded and popped into one of the pockets of his shirt. Gene let out a small snort of laughter as she unfolded them and put them on herself, the reflective sunnies really not going with her Cleopatra outfit, but not taking away from how beautiful she looked, her face hovering above him. She moved to lean down to kiss him, but stopped milimeters short of his lips.

'Oh and Gene?' she whispered, her voice breathy.

'Yes, Pricicle?'

'I really, _really _like being with you too. I mean it' she told him, searching his eyes for confirmation that he knew that she really did mean it. In reply she received a tiny nod of his head and felt a hand at the back of her neck suddenly pulling her down towards him, his lips crashing onto hers.

_TBC..._


	3. Kiss Me

**So this has taken FAR longer than I thought (And wanted) it would take and so my sorries! I've been crazy busy as of late, but I shall try and keep a bit more time back for writing and updating this little old fic of mine! **

**Your thoughts are so appreciated and so if you have a moment, I'd love to hear what you think about this chapter and if you're still enjoying this story! **

**Enjoy, people!**

**MBRB'xoxo**

****_Settle down with me _

_And I'll be your safety_

_And you'll be my Lady. _

_I was made to keep your body warm, _

_But I'm cold as the wind blows, _

_So hold me in your arms. _

_**Kiss me - Ed Sheeran**  
_

'Go to the lake?'

'No'

'Get a coffee?'

'No. The world's your lobster and you want to get _another _coffee?' Alex ignored his jibe.

'It's Oyster. The cinema?'

'No. Why don't you just come back to mine?' Gene eventually said with a frustrated sigh. They had been sat in a rather dingy park for the last twenty minutes, Alex trying to find something for them to do and Gene dismissing every idea without fail. He was sat watching her from on the grass that had definitely seen better days as she kept her feet on the ground and rocked herself back and forth on a swing that creaked and moaned with every movement. Alex raised her eyes from where they had been watching the ground pass beneath her feet as she swung slowly, surprised at his suggestion. She wasn't really sure what to say at first, a small wrinkle of confusion forming between her brows.

'Why didn't you just say that half an hour ago?' she asked him. Gene looked across at her as she slowed to almost a stop.

'I didn't think you'd want to' he said bluntly with a shrug. Alex looked mildly surprised, wondering why he would assume she wouldn't want to go back to his house. A small silence passed between them as Alex thought about what he had said and started to move herself on the swing again.

'I'd like to' she eventually said, her voice quieter than it had been moments before. She didn't know why, but going to Genes house hadn't really crossed her mind before. He was such a private person that seeing where he lived and meeting his parents was something that she hadn't really thought he'd want her to do so soon.

'Come on them, your Ladyship' Gene told her. There was a moment in which he slowly clambered to his feet with very little grace and waited for Alex to stop her swinging and join him. She smiled to herself a little at his complete lack of poise and then stood up from her seat and tucked her hands deep into the pockets of her long woolen cardigan. The wind had become bitter as they had lounged about and she was feeling the effects of it now, regretting her choice of foregoing a coat.

'How far is it?' It occurred to her that she hadn't a clue where arounds he actually lived. He loved driving and so whenever they were going somewhere, he usually just picked her up from wherever she was and she couldn't recall him talking about his home very much - especially not specifics like where it actually _was. _

_'_Not far, Pricey. Don't worry, you won't have to walk very far in those bloody ridiculous shoes' he inclined his head down towards her calf length brown heeled boots and she let out a little noise of protest at his insult to her footwear.

'These shoes are really comfy, thank you very much. Besides. You wouldn't want me to be shorter than you when we're out and about, would you' she teased. Gene didn't reply - she hadn't expected him to - and instead just lead her to his beloved car.

x-x-x-x

As the engine cut and the music that had been blasting stopped mid song, Alex turned to look out of the window to the house that Gene had pulled up to. It was nothing spectacular, nothing flashy, but it was quaint and tidy-looking. Terraced houses lined the streets, each looking almost identical in structure and nothing that Alex hadn't seen a hundred times before; four window, one door, a small garden out the front in a range of different states. The house that Gene had stopped at and was now walking towards was pale blue in colour with the garden clean and well kept. It was a stark contrast to the off-white house that stop to the left of it with it's ripped trampoline and occasional neglected plant twined with a forest of untamed weeds. The garden matched the woman who was walking down the path perfectly and Alex felt a small quiver of nervousness in her stomach as she tried to look the woman over as surreptitiously as she could. Her grey tracksuit bottoms tucked into a pair of fake uggs that were clearly not at their best did nothing for her levels of class.

'The fuck are you lookin' at?!' a high pitched yell was emitted from her and Alex jumped slightly, not realising that her sideways glance had changed to a very unsubtle stare. The woman was looking at Alex with both her arms outstretched a little in the classic 'come on then' stance, her body language oozing annoyance. Gene looked up from where he had been fitting his key into the lock and twisting it in a rather specific way and placed a hand on the small of Alexs' back, ushering her inside quickly.

'Sorry about her' Gene told her with a hint of embarrassment, one hand reaching up to rub the back of his neck. 'She's ... a bit - you know' he told her. Alex shook her head and waved a hand in dismissal.

'Don't worry about it' she reassured him. The woman had startled her but it was clear to her that Gene was uncomfortable about his next door neighbours harsh tone and so she waved it away. Taking the chance, she glanced around into the hallway that she was now standing in. There was a dark patterned carpet which contrasted with the magnolia walls that were covered with an assortment of pictures and paintings, both hand-painted and prints of famous artists work. Alexs' eyes flitted from picture to picture, taking in the face. There was Gene pouting out from his frames at a range of ages, sometimes with another younger boy and sometimes with a woman who she assumed was his mother. A slightly crumpled drawing clearly done by a child had been smoothed out, placed behind glass and then hung next to a strangely complimentary print of a Picasso classic. Alex couldn't help but give a small smile at the sight of the wall and then turned back to Gene who had been taking off his shoes.

'Ready?' Gene asked her, indicating to her to take the lead to go upstairs. Alex nodded to him as she finished slipping off her shoes and then made her way cautiously up the stairs. As they reached the landing, Alex stopped and looked behind her to see where it was that she was supposed to be going. She found herself in a small hallway with a bathroom at the end and 3 closed doors. Gene pointed her towards the door on the left and she opened the wooden door that lead to Gene Hunts bedroom.

Stepping inside, Alex looked around, her eyes scanning over the room quickly before she focused on the details. It was a simple teenage boys room with a double bed pushed against one wall that had he ceiling sloping down above it, a wardrobe with a chest of draws next to it against another wall and numerous posters filling the available areas where the walls were empty.

'The Good, the Bad and the Ugly?' Alex asked with one eyebrow raised in question, a twitch of amusement playing at the corner of her mouth.

'I'm all three' Gene confirmed with a wink. Alex let out a snort of laughter and turned to have a look at what other posters he had hanging up. A poster from the original version of True Grit hung side by side with one from The Shootist just above his chest of draws and a new looking ipod docking station in which Genes' Ipod was sat.

'Seems John Wayne is my competition' she said wryly, walking over to the Ipod, interested in what he had last been playing. Gene also walked further into his room, slumping down onto his bed and punching a pillow into submission to support his back as placed it behind him.

'There really is no competition between you, Price' he told her. Alex looked over at him to give him a sweet smile at his words, a flutter of happiness shooting through her stomach.

'_Noone _ can replace Johnny boy' he finished, wiping the smile of Alexs' face instantly and causing her to give him a rather unimpressed glare. The sight of her frowning at him tickled Gene and he let out a tiny shot of laughter followed by a reassuring wink. She shook her head and rolled her eyes, turning back to his Ipod and unlocking it with the little click that indicated the control of the music was now hers. Without really looking at what had been midsong, she pressed play and listened to the beat that filled the room. She raised her eyes in surprise as Mumford and Sons filled the room, the base of 'Little Lion Man' ringing out. The thought of Gene being a Mumford fan hadn't crossed her mind and now that she was hearing it, it still didn't really make much sense but she supposed he never did really conform to expectations. She gave him a little look of approval and then moved on to the desk that was on the opposite side of his room where an assortment of papers were scattered over its surface, hiding most of its dark wood from view. On closer inspection, the subject of the papers was mainly school work; subjects all mixed in with each other in an untidy mess. One sheet of what she assumed was economics sat on top at a slight angle, a pen dropped carelessly on top of it where Gene had begun to label a carefully drawn graph with 'Quantity Dema-' and then stopped halfway through. She reached out and shifted the paper to one side slightly and pulled his diary towards her a little, looking at the various appointments and plans he had scribbled in there. Most days had 'Rugby' with a time and place after it or what homework he had been set on that date. Picking up his discarded pen, Alex leant over quickly and jotted something down on the current date.

'What're you doing?' Gene asked, having watched her quietly. Alex ignored him until she had finished a couple of seconds later and then straightened up, turning to him with a little smile.

'Nothing' she told him, walking over to where he was sat and away from his desk and diary in which she had written 'Alex visits the Hunt household for the first time' followed by a little heart. Gene would soon forget that she had written anything at all and sit down to complete his homework, the added date catching his eye and bringing a private smile to his lips as he read it and shook his head at his daft tart of a girlfriend.

'Is your Mum not home?' She asked him, curling her feet up beneath her beside him on the bed. Gene shook his head no in response.

'She finishes work in a bit' he told her, glancing at an alarm clock on his beside table behind her for confirmation that his mother would be home within the next half an hour or so. Alex let out a little 'ohh' of understanding and nodded, her fingers reaching down to run up the seam of her skinny jeans and then play with the hem of her cardigan.

'Your house is really nice' she waved her free hand around his room and Gene nodded his thanks at her. A comfortable silence engulfed them as Alexs' phone buzzed and she sent a quick reply to the message that Annie had just sent her. In that time, the song that had been playing came to an end and another soon took its place. Realising what it was that was now playing, Alex lifted her head and then looked at Gene with a blank expression for a second before bursting into laughter.

'The Script?!' she said through her giggles. Gene raised an eyebrow, surprised at her raucous laughter.

'What's wrong with The Script?' he asked as For The First Time played in the background.

'Nothing. Nothing's wrong with it' she had a hand hovering in front of her mouth which she then fanned infront of her face for a second, trying to compose herself. 'There's nothing wrong with them. I just didn't expect you of all people to be listening to a boyband singing about love and sentimental-ness' she explained. She wasn't really sure why it had tickled her so much, but there was something about the contrast of Gene Hunt who was so masculine and male listening to people singing about women who broke their hearts etcetera.

'Shut it, Nutjob' he scolded her, a twinkle in his eye and his hands reaching out to twist around her waist and pull her closer to him. 'I can listen to what I want to listen to' he pressed a kiss to Alexs' temple as she nodded her head in agreement.

'Of course. Sorry. I just ... it was...didn't... it was unexpec- different' she seemed to have found the word that she had been looking for and dropped her voice to a more confident, serious tone. 'Different. It was different' she tried to look serious, her face angled down a little and her brows dropped every so slightly in an attempt at looking concentrated. She clearly wasn't fooling Gene who rolled his eyes and pushed her away from him slightly by her shoulder. His playful shove shattered her already flimsy resolve and she giggled again, moving closer to Gene and moving so that her legs were draped across his, her hands linked around his neck.

'I'm sorry. I love The Script' she mumbled, her bottom lip sticking out in an over exaggerated pout.

'Yeah, you'd better' Gene both out-mumbled and out-pouted her with very little effort, enjoying the sensation of her holding herself close to him.

'Kiss it better?' Alex asked. Gene nodded with a barely visible sly smile, shifting forward and bringing his lips down to meet hers.

x-x-x-x

Alex felt her stomach fluttering as she made her way down the stairs behind Gene. As promise, she had come home not long after Gene had said that she would and he had told her that she had better come and meet her. Alex wasn't really sure why she was so nervous; she had been a little jittery when meeting Peters' parents but now her stomach was positively doing flips. It occurred to her that maybe it was because she was desperate to make a good impression on Genes' mother. Sure, she had wanted Peters Mum and Dad to like her, but now that she was meeting Mrs Hunt, she felt that she _needed _her to like her. Gene could feel her caution and reached behind him to take her hand to reassure her that it was okay. He and his Mum had been through so much together that she was the one person that Gene could be 100% himself in front of. He was getting there with Alex, but in front of his Mother, he had no qualms about showing affection to Alex and so gave her hand a small squeeze as his Mum stood at the bottom of the stairs faffing around with her bag.

'Alright?' Gene asked her, the sound of his voice causing her to lift her head.

'Heya, love' she greeted him with a smile, her thick mancutian accent evident in her few words. Her eyes travelled over him and to where Alex was half hidden behind him smiling shyly.

'And is this the Alex that I have heard so much about?' she asked brightly. Gene rolled his eyes. His mother was a friendly looking woman with bright eyes and dark, slightly untidy hair. Her face showed slight signs of ageing - the odd wrinkle appearing at the corner of her eyes and between her brows but they were counterbalanced by the laughter lines that were around her mouth. Not large but not thin enough to look frail, she was a woman who looked approachable and trustworthy and Alex took an instant liking to her.

'It's not going to be anyone else, is it?' he told her dryly. Alex tried to hide a little smile as his Mum reached out and slapped him on the shoulder lightly.

'None of your lip, young man' she tried to frown but her cheery smile couldn't be hidden so easily. She turned back to Alex once more and pushed Gene aside to get a better view of her. Gene had moved so that he was at the bottom of the stairs and now leaning against a wall looking over Alex along with his Mum. She was pulling nervously on the sleeve of her cardigan feeling particularly self-concious now that she had the pair of them looking her over from top to toe.

'Well it's lovely to meet the famous Alexandra' she said eventually, stepping forward to give Alex a welcoming hug. Alex instantly felt her stomach unclench and a sigh of relief pass her lips.

'Nice to meet you too' she replied.

'Come on, come on. Can't keep you standing there on the stairs' she was bustled through to the living room which was as homely as the rest of the house; ornaments and books lining the shelves and a friendly, warm atmosphere.

'So Alex, how is it that you can cope with Gene when noone else I have ever met has been able to keep him under control?' she asked as Alex sank into one of their patterned sofas, Gene sitting next to her and his Mum sitting opposite them in a single seater. Alex giggled.

'You just have to show him who's boss, I guess' Alex explained with a smile. Her response caused Genes Mum (she realised that she didn't know her name yet) to throw her head back and let out a stream of laughter that could only be described as infectious.

'Oh, I like her, Gene' she said as her laughter died. Gene raised his eye brows in a 'I can see that' kind of a way whilst putting an arm around Alex's shoulders.

'She's alright' Gene teased. Alex and his mother both looked pretty appalled at his comment but his little wink and nudge of her shoulder indicated that he was kidding. Alex was surprised at how at home she felt already when she had been so nervous minutes before, but with Genes arm around her now and his Mums' bright smile, it was impossible to feel uncomfortable and out of place.

'You'd better be treating her right, Genie. A girl like that will have a queue of boys waiting to take your place' he was warned and Alex blushed a little as she laughed. Turning to him slightly, she played along.

'Yeah right, Guv. To quote Beyonce; 'I can have another you in a minute'' she laughed at his deadpan expression of unimpressed-ness and was happy to hear the trickle of laughter coming from the single seat opposite them.

'Noone else would have her, Ma. She's far too gobby and is a bit too big for her boots' he scolded. Alex raised an eyebrow at him and slapped his shoulder, a small 'ah' of protest escaping her. Alex couldn't keep the smile off her face. It was so nice to see Gene at home and bantering with his Mum. She could feel in his body language and tone that he was far more relaxed here than he was when in the company of their friends at school and she felt that little bit closer to the real Gene; the one who felt comfortable with his arm wrapped around her and her head leant on his shoulder, teasing her with his Mother.

'I highly doubt that, Gene. You don't call him 'Guv', do you Alex? It goes straight to his head, you know' Alex laughed a little and pulled an apologetic face.

'I'm afraid I do. He doesn't often reply to 'Gene' or 'Oi, you''

'I don't know _how _he managed to get people to call him that, you know. Bullied them into it I expect' she pondered. Alex nodded in agreement as Gene pouted beside her.

'Is this how it's going to be from now on?' he sighed. Alex nodded and then pecked his shoulder that was available to her happily and then took out her phone to type out a quick text. Knowing that Gene always kept his phone on vibrate and so it wouldn't be too obvious that she was texting him, she pressed send and then subtly put her phone away. As she thought, Gene pulled his phone out moments later and read the message that had appeared on his screen. A moment passed before;

'Nim' Genes Mum looked up instantly and Alex looked at him a bit confused. He was looking down at her, straight into her eyes, his own full of smugness.

'What?' His Mum asked him as Alex just crinkled her brow in confusion.

'Mums name is Nim' he told her, inclining his head towards his mother who was looking completely confused. Alex, however, had gone past confusion and was well on her way to mortified.

'Gene' she hissed.

'Her name's Nim' he repeated.

'Okay, thanks' she mumbled to him, trying to hide the blush that had crept onto her cheeks.

'Why do you keep saying that?' his Mum asked him, a hint of bewilderment in her voice.

'Pricey didn't know your name so she text me asking it' he explained, holding up his phone where her message was still showing.

_What's your Mums name? I don't actually know it! xx_

Beside him, Alex was burning red and ready to kill Gene. Nim was apparently finding it absolutely hilarious, as was Gene from the smirk that was on his face.

'Don't worry about it, love' Nim eventually said once her laughter had faded away, as had some of the colour in Alexs face. 'At least you asked! Eventually' she gave Alex a reassuring wink. 'It's actually Mary but everyone calls me Nim. Can't even remember why now!' she then explained. Alex studied her face and decided that Nim suited her far better than Mary did. She had an air of being young and fun as her nickname reflected, someone who would be up for a laugh despite whatever may have happened in her past. Alex smiled in acknowledgement and then turned to Gene with a frown.

'It was _obvious _that I wouldn't want you to say that out loud' she scolded. Gene just gave her a smug smile in response.

'It is _obvious _that I don't want you to favour my Mother to me!' he countered, a pout firmly in place. Alex rolled her eyes and then crossed her arms over her chest in a mock sulk.

'Well I do now' she mumbled. Nim looked on at the young couple with a small, private smile on her face. It was so lovely to see Gene relaxed in the company of another person, let along a girl. There had been times that she doubted that he would find anyone - not because he was unlovable, but because his walls were so highly build and carefully constructed that she doubted anyone would ever be able to break through. And yet here was Alex, her legs now curled beneath her and her body weight shifted so that it was mainly supported by Gene looking perfectly at home. Nim knew that it took someone pretty special for Gene to be able to let them in and from the small amount of time that she had spent with Alex, Nim could say she was pretty sure Alex was exactly that.

'I'll let you two fight this one out and make myself scarce' Nim said with a smile and rose from her chair. Gene and Alex looked like they were about to protest but she threw a halting hand up before they were able to and shook her head.

'No, no. You don't want an old hag hanging around' she laughed and made her way out of the room and towards the kitchen where she was decided what she was going to make for dinner.

'Your Mum's really nice' Alex said to Gene who nodded in agreement.

'Yeah, she's not bad for an old bird' he said with a little smile that made Alex laugh.

'And you're not bad for a bad boy' she told him, one eyebrow raised.

'Bad boy?! Where the hell did that come from?' he asked. Alex giggled and reached up to play with the collar of his rugby style shirt.

'Only bad boys try and embarrass piss their girlfriends off in front of their mothers' she explained, her voice low.

'I guess I _must _be a bad boy then' he agreed, moving his face a little closer to hers as her suggestive voice sliced straight through him.

'Mhmm'

'Mhmm' he repeated her mumbled of agreement and then pulled her suddenly to him, his hands clasped around her and cutting off her loud giggle of surprise with a kiss that she welcomed without even a hint of protest.

_TBC..._


	4. Next To Me

**So my updates are pretty rubbish atm, but I've been pretty ill and busy with college, so do bare with me! **

**I hope that this still has readers and I'd love to hear your thoughts if you have a moment to give it a quick review! (Shameless asking there)**

**Things are starting to get a bit grittier now and the next chapter should kick it off ;)  
Those of you still here, Enjoy!**

**MBRB'xoxo**

_You won't find him tryna chase the Devil,_

_For money, dame, for power, out of grief,_

_You won't ever find him where the rest go._

_You will find him, you'll find him next to me. _

_**Next to me - Emili Sande**  
_

As it always does, the time until half term crawled but if asked to pinpoint when it was that seemed particularly slow, the weeks that had passed seemed like a complete blur. Before she knew it, she was exchanging 'see you later's with her teachers and classes and was waking up on Monday morning without an alarm set.

Waking up was bliss, not needing to get up and get ready at a time in the morning that shouldn't even be legal. Instead, she slid her slippers onto her feet, grabbed her phone from her bedside table and made her way downstairs, reading the messages that she had from overnight. The usual junk mail from her emais had come through to her phone that she marked as open without really looking at, and then opened her message inbox to see what the 2 texts she had received had said.

_See you soon, Scrap! xx_

Alex smiled as she read the message from her Godfather, Evan. She hadn't seen him since they had left London and she had always been close him, so she was excited for him to come and stay with them later on that day. He'd be travelling up and arriving about 12ish and Alex really couldn't wait. The message put a smile on her face and she quickly typed back a reply.

_Can't wait! Hurry up and get here :) xxxx_

The other message was from Gene and she grinned as she opened it. She was hoping that Gene would be free to come round for dinner at some point whilst Evan was there. He was yet to meet her parents, but she was eager to find out what they thought of him, especially Evan whose opinion she valued greatly.

_Sorry, fell asleep! Sleep okay? x_

Alex rolled her eyes. That had been texting the night before and she had guessed that he had fallen asleep by the lack of reply. She wrote him a quick reply saying what a fool he was and that yes, she had slept okay and was excited for Evan to be there.

'Alright, darling?' Caroline asked with a smile as Alex made her way into the kitchen and sat down at the table. She nodded at her Mother.

'Yeah, you?' she asked. Lazily, she leant forward on the table and put her head in one hand, leaning on it. Caroline said she was fine and then busied herself with cleaning, making sure that the place was presentable and tidy. Tim was already at work and so it was just the two Price ladies in the house, Radio 1 playing in the background.

'Evan text me this morning'

'Oh yeah?'

'Just saying he was looking forward to coming' Alex shrugged. Caroline gave her daughter a look of acknowledgement and then turned back to the sides that she was wiping down. Alex, on the other hand, picked her phone up again and opened her Facebook app on her Blackberry, scrolling through the various status updates and wallposts, liking Shazs' 'Pizza and tea for breakfast? Brill!'.

x-x-x-x

'Lex! Evan's here!' Alex jumped off her bed where she had been reading The Crimson Petal and the White for her English class as she heard the front door close and a bag being put down on the floor. Making her way down the stairs, she saw Caroline and Evan hugging tightly, pulling apart as she came down so that he was free to give Alex a hello hug.

'Hey, Scrap. Look at you! Manchester life is treating you well!' he told her, looking her up and down as they pulled apart. Alex laughed and waved his words away with a roll of her eyes. The three of them made their way through to the living room which Evan looked around with interest.

'I love what you've done with it, Caroline' he told her, taking a seat. Caroline dropped down to sit by his feet on the floor - it was something that she often did that Alex no longer even thought about. Her Mother had always preferred kicking off her heels and sitting on the floor - as Alex curled her feet up underneath her on another sofa.

'How've you been, Evan? How's everyone in London?' Alex asked, keenly. Evan smiled a little at her eagerness.

'Fantastic. I can't speak for everyone in London, but from what I know, they're fine' he winked as Alex rolled her eyes. Caroline, with one elbow leant on his knee, looked up at him with her head leant in one hand.

'How did the Faber case go?' she asked him, suddenly straightening up a little. Evan looked down at her with a smug look on his face.

'Nailed him' he told her. Caroline clapped her hands together once and let out a small noise of happiness.

'Ohh, you amazing thing!' she slapped his thigh. 'I _kept on _ meaning to ask you, but it always slipped my mind' she seemed thrilled about the result and Alex looked on happily as her Mother and Evan laughed and chatted about various cases that either of them had dealt with.

x-x-x-x

'Why don't you see if Gene is free tonight?' Caroline asked Alex about an hour after Evan had arrived, bringing in two cups of tea and handing one to Alex then perching on the edge of the sofa next to Evan, cradling his steaming mug in her hands. Alex looked at her mother in surprise. She had wanted Gene to come and meet her family at some point, but hadn't expected Caroline to a) approach the subject herself or b) ask him round on Evans first evening in Manchester. Evan looked up with interest, his gaze flicking between mother and daughter.

'Gene? Who's this?' he asked. Alex blushed slightly and lowered her gaze as Caroline settled into the sofa, casually bringing her feet up and propping them on Evans lap, crossed at the ankles.

'Gene is our little Alexs' boyfriend' it was clear she was taking delight in telling her bit of gossip and Evans eyebrows shot up and a grin broke on his face.

'Ohhh is he now? It would be rude not to invite him them, wouldn't it!' Caroline nodded in agreement next to him, letting out a little giggle. Alex had wanted Gene to come and meet her family and had done for a while now, but hadn't expected her mother to a) be the one to approach the subject or b) invite him to dinner on Evans first evening in Manchester. Trying to keep a passive face, she stood up from her sofa and made her way across the living room, rolling her eyes at the adults.

'Alright, alright. Try not to get over excited' she told them and closed the living room door behind her. She tried to land her excited skip and jump quietly so that her mother and stepfather didn't head it, letting out an excited little yelp and making her way up the stairs to text Gene.

_What're you doing tonight? xx_

She turned to the mirror to put her hair up in a bun but only managed to wrap a hairband round it before her phone beeped with Genes reply.

_I didn't think you were that kind of girl, Price ;) Why? xx_

She rolled her eyes at his message.

_Fancy coming for dinner tonight? About 7? xx_

_Sure I wouldn't lower the tone of your la de da household? xx _

_Are you coming or not, knobhead? xx_

As soon as she pressed send, the thought struck her that the old Alex who lived in London would never have called her boyfriend a 'knobhead' - joking or not - and realised that she really didn't care. Gene Hunt was clearly rubbing off on her far quicker than she had ever expected him to, and she decided that she actually quite liked it.

_Calm down Misses Sulky knickers! Sure... is it black tie? xx_

The image of Gene in a pristine suit, white shirt and tie was something that was far from unpleasant but the Prices weren't _that _fancy.

_No need for that. Just make sure you've washed behind yours ears ;) xx_

She made her way back downstairs to tell her Mum that Gene would be able to come tonight and heard loud laughter coming from behind the door. Pushing it open, she saw Caroline with her head thrown back, lightly hitting Evans arm. It was nice to see her Mother so carefree. She was usually quite light-hearted and cheery at home, but with a job that was so intense and pressurised, it was no surprise that she was occasionally a little highly strung. Tim and Caroline had a brilliant, loving relationship but there was noone that could make her laugh like Evan did.

'What did Master Hunt say then?' Caroline asked as Alex curled herself back into her sofa and placed her phone on the arm. She leant one arm on her hand and propped her elbow up on the arm of the sofa next to her phone.

'He said he'd be delighted to' Alex told them. Evan grinned, but it was Carolines doubtful face that Alex focused on.

''Delighted?' I don't know much about this boy but he doesn't sound like the type to say he'd 'be delighted to'' Caroline teased. Alex smiled lightly.

'Okay well he said he'd love to lower to the tone of our la de da house, but I thought a little paraphrasing wouldn't do any harm'

'So what's this Gene like, Lex?' Evan asked, keen to hear about his goddaughters other half. She hadn't had many boyfriends back in London, despite interest, so whoever this boy was must be pretty special. Alex thought about how best to describe Gene to someone who didn't know him and realised that if she wasn't careful, some of his more masculine qualities could come across as pretty ... well... nasty.

'He's the Rugby team captain and he's lovely' was what she managed to come out with. Evan nodded and turned to Caroline.

'Have you met loverboy yet?' he asked. Caroline shook her head.

'I met him for a couple of seconds when Lex first started school, but not really' she told him. Alex giggled at the memory of the first time her mother had met Gene, before they were together. She had only seen Genes shy side once, maybe twice, and it made her laugh to think of the awkwardness that had passed between the three of them as they had stood on her doorstep after the first rugby match she had attended.

'He wasn't really at his best when you met him' Alex told Evan with a roll of her eyes.

'Well I'm sure he's fabulous. He had just better be good enough for my little scrap' Evan winked.

x-x-x-x

Having got changed into a smart-casual blouse with a pair of black skinny jeans, Alex ruffled her hair in the mirror. It was kind of tradition for the family to make some form of effort when Evan came round to eat an although it wasn't formal, it was nice to pin her hair up and apply her makeup in a way that she didn't usually. The doorbell rang and, glancing at the time and checking herself once more in the mirror, Alex jogged down the stairs. Passing the open door of the living room, she heard a loud teasing 'ohhhhhhh' coming from inside and looked through quickly to see Tim, Caroline and Evan each with a teasing expression on their faces and their eyebrows raised. Rolling her eyes, she continued down the corridor to the door where Gene had rung the doorbell again.

'Heya' she breathed, opening the door and looking Gene up and down. He looked dashing in a pair of jeans and a pale shirt with black pinstripe and Alex couldn't suppress her smile.

'Alright?' he asked her. Alex nodded, grinning up at him.

'...Are you going to let me in, Pricey?' he asked her a couple of seconds later after she hadn't moved from the doorway.

'Yeah, Lex. Let the gentleman in' a voice came from behind and Alex turned to see Caroline coming out of the living room followed by Tim and Evan to meet their little girls boyfriend. Alex stood aside awkwardly and motioned to the three adults.

'Gene, this is my Mum, Dad and Evan' she said, indicating the appropriate person as she said their names. 'People, this is Gene. Obviously' Gene raised a hand in a hello kind of motion, not really sure what to do.

'Would you like a drink, Gene?' Tim asked him, stepping past Caroline and making his way to the kitchen.

'You got any beers?' Gene asked, going to follow Tim through to the kitchen. Tim looked at him a little taken aback, not really sure what to say.

'Er.. we don't...' he said slightly awkwardly. Gene and Alex exchanged a look, Alex with her lips pulled in her eyes slightly wider than normal.

'I... I was kidding' Gene told him, following him through to the kitchen. 'I'll have an apple juice if you have one?' Tim let out a small breath of laughter as Alex and Caroline caught each others eyes and grimaced a little.

x-x-x-x

Sitting down to dinner, Alex brushed her hand against Genes thigh lightly to get his attention.

'Are you alright?' she asked him quietly. Gene nodded and gave her a shadow of a smile. Caroline placed a dish down in front of him and then took her seat opposite Alex. Evan sat opposite Gene and Tim sat between Caroline and Alex at the head of the table.

'I hope you like kieve, Gene' Caroline beamed at him and he nodded in response.

'I love it. Thanks Mrs. Price' he told her. Caroline waved a dismissive hand at his words.

'Oh, call me Caroline! Mrs Price make me sound like some old hag' a mummer of laughter went around the table and silence fell as they all began to eat. The clinking of cutlery against plates filled the room until Evan broke it.

'This is lovely, Caroline. I've missed your cooking' he grinned at her with a wink. Caroline rolled her eyes thinking he was teasing her and then turned back to Gene, eager to know more about it.

'So, Gene. Tell us about yourself. What do you want to do with your life? What're you going to do at university?'

'Ohhh the real test begins. Lets see if you're good enough for our little girl' Tim joked, a smile on his lips. Alex glanced at Gene out of the corner of her eye at her mothers words, feeling Gene tense beside her a little. The three of them waited for him to finish his mouth full of food patiently.

'I, erm. I don't actually want to go to university' he told them awkwardly. His words were met with silence and Alex lowered her eyes. She knew that Gene had absolutely no desire to go to university, but she also knew that her parents thought very highly of the typical academic types that went to uni and trained in a profession such as medicine or science. And she also knew that they had always hoped that she would end up with that very type.

'Oh. I see' Caroline said evenly, piercing a carrot with her fork with delicacy that Gene hadn't noticed before. 'And what is it that you would like to do?' Tim was looking at him with a look that Gene found unusually intense and Evan also looked keen to know what it was he was going to say.

'I'd like to go into the police force' he told them. Evan raised his eyebrows and Tim and Caroline exchanged a glance that Alex cringed internally at. She knew very well their opinion of police men and she was pretty sure that that opinion could be read quite clearly in their look. As lawyers, they often had disagreements with the Police and there had been many times that they had been damn sure the police were in the wrong.

'What makes you want to do that then? Evan asked. His opinion of the police was marginally better than Caroline and Tims - in his time he had met a number of officers that were the most compassionate and honest people he had ever known - but he had to admit, he had always pictured Alex falling for someone that was more traditionally academic.

'I want to clean up the scum' he said. He intended to leave it at the, but the expectant look on the adults faces clearly meant he was to go on. 'When I watch the news and see all these kids who are breaking into shops or people terrorising people, ruining peoples lives, killing the innocent, it makes me sick. I want to do something about it and I think that I could. I'm not super clever or really fancy. I just want to get out on the streets and make them safe again so kids and wives and grandparents can walk down the street without making sure the person behind them's not gonna whack a knife in their back' Alex smiled gently at Gene, slipping her hand across the table and clasping his briefly. He looked across at her and then down at their hands. He moved his thumb and ran it across the base of hers lightly, thanking her silently for her support.

'Well that's very...' Caroline couldn't think of the right word and paused. 'noble' she finished lamely. Alex found herself closing her eyes and pressing one hand to her temple lightly.

'...Thanks'

'Well dinner was lovely, Caroline. Thank you' Evan said with a deep breath, rather louder than he usually spoke. Alex jumped in with her agreement, thanking Evan silently for his distraction.

'Yeah, thanks Mum. That was really nice' she said, pushing her plate away from her slightly. Gene did the same next to her, giving a little mumble of approval.

'And now what's it time for, Lex?' Evan asked, a sly tone to his voice. Gene looked at the girl next to him questioningly and saw her face light up.

'You haven't...' she grinned. Evan nodded and shifted in his chair to reach beneath it, bringing up a quite small bluish/greenish gift bag with the Tiffanys logo emblazoned proudly on the side and placing it on the table. Gene felt decidedly left out as Tim and Caroline lighthearedly scolded Evan who ignored them and pushed the bag towards Alex who ripped it open, squealing as she did so.

'Evan, I can't believe you!' she told him, pulling a jewellery box out of the bag and opening it quickly. He could see a silver necklace sitting proudly in its box, oozing expense and money.

'It's absolutely beautiful, Evan. Thank you!' jumping up, she ran around the table and pulled Evan into a tight hug, asking him to fix it around her neck and admiring her reflection in a mirror that hung above the mantle piece in the dining silver heart shaped pendant with the Tiffanys signature stamped into it hung perfectly on her neck and the smile that graced her face stretched from ear to ear.

'Evan gets me something every time he comes to stay with us' Alex explained to Gene who nodded with understanding. 'Although he really shouldn't' she scolded him, slapping his shoulder lightly.

'My goddaughter needs to be treated like a Princess, doesn't she!' he told her with a wink, glancing surreptitiously over to Gene who didn't miss the look of warning.

x-x-x-x

'Bye Gene' the three adults said in unison, waving a little at Gene as he returned the sentiment and waited for Alex to pull on her slippers.

'You don't have to, you know' Gene shook his head at the leopard print slippers she had put on her feet, contrasting with the quite classy outfit that she was wearing.

'Shush, you. Go on' she told him, indicating to the door. She had insisted that she walk him to his car and he had learnt long ago that there was very little point in arguing with Alex. Gene lead the way out of the front door as Alex called behind her that she'd be back in a minute and wrapped her arms around her as the bitter cold hit her.

'Did you have a good evening?' she asked him as they walked towards his car that sat on the street.

'Yeah, it was nice. Did you?' Alex nodded in reply and then leant against the bonnet of his car looking down at her feet for a second before lifting her eyes and looking at him with a slight frown.

'I'm sorry about my parents' she said softly. She had been mortified at their obvious disapproval of his future career choice. Gene smiled very slightly at her.

'It's okay. They don't have to think I'm perfect. I know they'd disapprove anyway, Pricicle. It doesn't matter' The frown lines between Alexs' brows deepened a little and she felt a pang of sadness pass through her. He didn't seem to mind that her parents had obvious doubts about him, but it was the fact that he sounded so accepting of it that hurt her. Not because she was upset on her behalf, but he sounding as if he expected it, that he knew he wasn't good enough for her and had learnt to accept it a long time ago. She pushed herself off the bonnet of his car and took a step towards him, reaching up and placing one hand lightly on his cheek.

'Gene' she started softly. 'It does matter. They should be happy that I'm happy with you. I don't care if you're not going to university or if you want a beer instead of apple juice' Gene shook his head.

'I was joking about the beer. I wanted apple juice' he mumbled. Alex looked at him with a face of such clear doubt that he couldn't stop himself letting out a small snort of laughter.

'Gene. You love beer. You hate apple juice' she told him bluntly. There was a pause and then;

'It was the first thing that came to mind. I could barely finish the damn stuff' Alex burst out laughing at his feeble tone of voice and his downcast eyes. She leant against his chest momentarily and then looked back up at him.

'Seriously, Gene. I love that you want to be a police officer. And you're going to be a damn good one. Your team will look up to you so much because you have such authority. And you care so much' she was tracing a pattern across his chest lightly with her finger. The air was growing thick around them as she spoke and Gene watched her, enchanted.

'Don't tell anyone. That's supposed to be a secret' he sad quietly.

'What? That you care?' he nodded and Alex rolled her eyes in the darkness.

'You puzzle me so much, Mister Hunt. You're so hard but so soft' she smiled up at him, her hand stilled before she carried on. 'Seriously, Gene. I don't care what my parents think and they don't hate you. They just had quite rigid ideas of who I was going to end up with and .. it wasn't... really... you' she said awkwardly, trying to find the right words. 'But I'd rather have you over any other posh, controlling, toffee arsed wanker anyday' she looked up at him with a massive smile on her face and her eyes sparkling. If her parents could hear her now...

'Oh hark at thee. Filthy mouth' he winked at her and the heavy atmosphere diffused.

'I enjoyed having you here tonight' she said softly. Gene wrapped both his arms around her, clasping his hands behind her back and pulling her to him and then pressed a kiss to her forehead.

'I enjoyed_ being_ here tonight' he said with equal softness and then leant down to give her a kiss that he had been dying to give her all evening. The young couple wrapped around each other, their lips moving against the others as if they had been together for years. Minutes passed and Gene knew that he really had to go, but the urge to stay with the beautiful teen in his arms was much too strong and he pulled her closer, keeping her there for a few moments longer before gripped her too him tightly and lifting her up. She pulled away from him with a squeal, their lips parting, and laughed loudly as she felt her feet lift off the ground. Her automatic reaction was to pull her legs up and wrap them around his waist but she only managed to hook one around him before he spun her around and leant forward so she felt like she would be dropped. But she knew that she wouldn't be. Gene was holding her tightly to him and she trusted him with her life, so just clung to him as she saw the view behind his head spin round and round. Eventually placing her back on the floor, he laughed at her dizzy eyes and he trailing laughter as she slumped backwards against the car once more.

'Oi you, watch the paintwork!' he told her. Alex rolled her eyes and grinned. Silence fell over them as they looked at eachother for a second before she broke the silence.

'I'd better go in' she whispered. Gene nodded. 'But seriously, Gene. You're perfect to me, okay?' she told him and he nodded, seemingly quite unconvinced.

'And you're a pain in the arse' he told her. Alex giggled.

'But you love me for it' she told him with a wink, leaning up to peck his lips once more, moving slightly towards her house.

'Yeah. I do' he agreed, causing her stomach to flip and her face to split in a thrilled grin.

'Night, Gene'

'Night, Pricey'

As she walked up the garden path and heard him close the drivers door and start the engine, she let out a squeal of happiness and balled her hands into fists, her muscles contracting with the joy that raced through her.

Did Gene Hunt just admit he loved her? She wasn't sure but it was enough for her.

Nothing could shatter her happiness now.

_TBC..._


	5. Secret

**A/n A short little chapter here, but I hope you enjoy it none-the-less! **

**If you have a moment, your thoughts in the little box at the bottom are SO appreciated! :D **

**MBRB'xoxo**

Alex dropped her bag into the boot of Evans car and slammed it shut with a smile. She was so excited just to be going back to London that she could barely keep the smile off her face. Evan had suggested that she come back with him fro a few days and, after only a small amount of 'oh please, Mum! Dad? Please!', Tim and Caroline had agreed. She would be returned three days later by Evan and had been given strict instructions that she were to call as soon as they got to London. Agreeing to anything her parents had said without really listening to what they were telling her, Alex gave her parents a hug goodbye each and then climbed into the passenger seat of Evans blue car excitedly, bouncing a tiny bit in her seat as she waited for him to finish assuring Caroline and Tim that he would take good care of her, yes he'd make sure she ate properly and _yes _he'd make sure that she phoned them when they arrived. He kissed Carolines cheek, shook Tims hand and then turned away from them, rolling his eyes dramatically and pulling a face at Alex to make her laugh, which it did. The drivers seat now filled, Alex beamed across at Evan who returned her happy smile.

'Ready, Scrap?' he asked her. Alex nodded happily. 'Sure you're not too Manchester now?' Alex let out a small laugh and gave Evan the withering look that always amused him. He knew that the young girl beside him would be a woman not to be crossed when she was older and that very look that she had just given him would be one that would keep her future husband well and truly under the thumb, be that Gene or anyone else who had the fortune to claim her hand. The car was started and guided out of the drive way of the Prices home with their daughter waving to her parents out of the window before they rounded a corner and she settled back in her seat. Alexs' stillness lasted only moments before she reached down to her feet and took her Ipod out of her handbag and plugged in a wire that connected it to the radio and scrolled down through her artists to 'D' to find the songs that her and Evan always listened to when they were together. It was a silly sort of thing to do, but Alex always thought of David Bowie as 'theirs' and the amount of times they had played his songs and sung along to them was absolutely countless. The electric bars began to play and Alex turned the volume up, smiling across at Evan who clearly recognised the song immediately and hummed out the iconic beat before ;

'_Pressure! Pushing down on me, pressing down on you, no man ask for...' _

x-x-x-x

'Wasn't too bad, was it?' Evan asked Alex, turning down an unfamiliar street. Alex hadn't realised, but Evan had moved not long after the Prices had moved to Manchester, finding a suitable flat that was closer to the office and more convenient than his old place had been. The street that they were now on was a nice one, lined with victorian looking houses that Alex assumed had been converted into flats. Each house had stone stairs leading up to their doors whilst black railings run along the front, a gate in them where the servants entrance would have been back in the day. Cars were parked outside most of the houses and Alex looked at each of them as Evan slowed, evidently preparing to pull into a space that was a few meters ahead. The combination of the smart appearance of the street and the expensive sheen to the majority of cars as well as knowing Evans pricey tastes, she could tell that the area was far from cheap.

'Like the look of it, Lex?' he asked her, glancing across at her to try and read her initial impression of his new place. Alex nodded enthusiastically; she always had loved this type of street and the thought of Evan now living on one made her, for some reason, really rather happy.

'It looks gorgeous' she told him sincerely. Evan seemed pleased at her reaction and glanced in his mirrors a final time to check that he was parked okay before pulling on the hand break, putting the car in neutral and turning off the engine.

'Ready?' Alex nodded and hitched her handbag onto her shoulder ready to get out of the car. Walking round to the boot, she watched a woman trying to juggle her shopping bags, handbag and keys that she was trying to unlock the door to the building next to the one that they had pulled up in front ofs door with. She thought she heard a small 'oh, blast' coming from the woman as she dropped an M&S carried bag, only just managing to stop her keys from falling to floor as well. Evan, in the mean time, had taken Alexs' bag out from the boot of the car and was now slamming it shut, catching the attention of the woman as he did so. Now that she was looking over to them, Alex could see she was a friendly looking woman who looked to be in her mid forties maybe? Her hair was a short pixie style cut which had been dyed a deep auburn which flattered her face and she was now smiling over at Evan and Alex despite her cafuffle with her bags and keys moments before.

'Oh hello, Evan! How was your holiday?' she called across to them cheerfully. Evan lifted a hand and waved to her, moving towards the building that had 'White Flat No. 2' nearly written on one of the buzzer buttons.

'Really good, thanks Mrs Winters. How's Dolly?' he asked her with a smile. Mrs Winters raised an eyebrow and tutted at Evan lightly.

'I've told you, call me Gracie, love. She's okay. Her cone came off yesterday so she's a bit happier' Evan nodded and chuckled, apparently at the thought of 'Dolly' having her cone taken off. Alex hoped that she was right in assuming that Dolly was a dog and not Mr Winters.

'Good to hear. Give her a treat from me' Alex saw Evan wink and Mrs Winters laugh appreciatively before turning her eyes to Alex herself.

'And who's this? Not the mysterious Alexandra at last?' Alexs eyes flitted to Evan at the womans words. He'd clearly been speaking about her and she wasn't sure if she liked it. She always had dislike it when adults spoke about children or teens like they weren't there 'You're right, Evan. She's a looker! She's got your eyes, hasn't she' the woman was now leaning forward, inspecting Alexs eyes a little closer from where she was stood on the neighbouring set of stone stairs. Alex et out a small noise of objection, looking from Evan to Mrs Winters.

'Oh, no' she laughed off. 'Evan's not my Dad. He's my godfather' Evan nodded immediately beside her and she saw Mrs Winters give him a questioning look.

'Oh, I could have sworn you said she was your daughter?' the woman seemed puzzled but Evan waved a hand dismissively.

'No, no. _God_daughter' Evan corrected. 'Though you seem like my kid at times, don't you scarp. Nagging and bugging me' he teased, bumping her shoulder lightly with a wink. Alex laughed and pushing him back, rolling her eyes at him.

'I swear I'm losing it, you know' Mrs Winters said, shaking her head at her ever-failing memory. 'I tell you, they say that the old brain starts to go at 50 or 60. Don't listen to them. You hit 45 and you can barely remember your own bloody name' she gave them an exasperated look and then finally turned the key that she had managed to push into the look a couple minutes of before and had left there as she had spoken to Alex and Evan. 'Any way, nice to see you again, love and I'll give Dolls that treat for you' Evan nodded and raised his hand that wasn't holding Alex's bag, waving goodbye at his next door neighbour as she disappeared into her building.

'She seems nice' Alex said, filling the quiet that had settled. Evan nodded, pushing open the door and placing her bag down in the entrance hallway as he picked a different key off his keyring and opened his little back mail box. Sorting through his mail from the last couple of days, he glanced up at Alex.

'Yeah, yeah she is' he told her with a distracted smile. Alex waited patiently as Evan sorted himself out and then picked up her bag. ''Come on then you, lets get you settled shall we?'' Alex grinned and then followed Evan up the stairs towards his flat.

That evening, Evan put to use his excellent cooking skills and made Alex a fabulous Italian dish that he knew was one of her favourites. Although they rarely did it at home or when she stayed with him before; the pair sat together with their meals on their laps, watching the TV whilst they ate. If she were asked, she wouldn't be able to say what it was that they watched, and it really didn't matter. The fact that they were sat together on a Saturday night slating all the trashy TV and rolling their eyes with mutual weariness at the reality shows was enough for them both. It was like being back a couple of months when she was living in London and would stay at Evans whenever her parents were away or they hadn't seen each other for a while. They'd sit together talking and watching TV with mounds of crappy food and then stay up into the night chatting and talking over cups of tea. Alex had loved those evenings and as Evan put the kettle on and the voting numbers of another show were put up on the screen, Alex felt a massive smile break across her face.


	6. Live to Tell

**a/n It's been so long since I last updated! I could fill this space with excuses, but in my defence, I've actually been pretty ill! I had a day off because my blood tests that I needed were right in the middle of my only lesson of the day so I didn't bother going in to college. Anywho! I apologise for the lack of updating and I should *fingers crossed* be back on track now! I don't know if anyone is still reading this, but if you are then you have my deepest gratitude. If you could spare a moment to let me know if you're still enjoying it, then it would be greatly appreciated! **

**And as always,enjoy! **

**MBRB'xoxo**

_I have a tale to tell  
Sometimes it gets so hard to hide it well  
I was not ready for the fall  
Too blind to see the writing on the wall_

_A man can tell a thousand lies  
Ive learned my lesson well  
Hope I live to tell  
The secret I have learned, till then  
It will burn inside of me_

_**Live to Tell - Madonna**_

Saturday came and went and Evan, with a plethora of apologies, was just leaving the flat to make his way to the office to sort out a couple of things and speak to a client that could apparently meet him no other day but Sunday.

'I'll be back as soon as I can. Probably about 3, alright, Scrap?' he told him with a smile. Alex nodded. She really didn't mind that he was going out without her and understood completely that his life couldn't grind to a halt just because she was visiting for a few days. Giving him a little wave and smile, she closed the door behind him and made her way through to the living room, pulling her phone out from her back pocket and slumping down on a sofa. She'd opened the window of the living room when she had woken up that morning to let in some of the fresh autumn air, but it had turned colder since then and as she scrolled through her facebook timeline on her phone, she was considering closing it to stop the chilly breeze that was hitting her. With her eyes on her phone, she crossed to the window, scrolling down and reading the various updates and comments from her friends, getting caught up in facebook and standing by the window for a few seconds without moving to close it.

'...I didn't realise, love'

'It's okay, I don't think she thought anything of it'

The conversation that was taking place on the street outside caught her attention. Taking her eyes from the phone in her hands, she moved to peek out over the edge of the window sill and her suspicions were confirmed when she saw Evan talking to Gracie Winters outside, briefcase and keys still in hand as they had been a couple of minutes before when he had left. A wrinkle of confusion appeared between her brows and she placed her phone down on the window sill, leaning over as close to the window as she dared so she could listen but so that Evan wouldn't be able to see her if he were to look up.

'Sorry again. You should have told me earlier, you silly thing. Me and my big mouth, we need a little warning when we're keeping a secret! She's gorgeous though. Right little looker' Alex's stomach dropped as she listened and she prayed that they were talking about someone - anyone - but her. Evan gave a dismissive wave of his hand and shook his head. From where Alex was, she could see his mouth twitch into a smile that she had seen many times before; it was one that he used for clients and, on the odd occasion, herself when he was trying to hide his annoyance. Gracies back was to Alex but she was sure that she hadn't picked up on the falseness of Evans grin.

'Don't worry about it, Gracie. Honestly. How were you to know? I should have told you she didn't know. But no harm done. Alex is always off in her own little world - she probably didn't give it a second thought'. There was a reason Evan was a lawyer. His ability to talk people round and reassure them that he was right was unmatched and the White charm had worked once more. Gracie gave out a relieved sigh and Alex saw her move forward to pat his shoulder.

'That's a worry off my shoulders then, dear. I was tossing and turning last night worried that I'd brought that little girls world crashing round her ears. Imagine finding something like that out at her age! I suppose it's best she never know. Keep the past in the past where it belongs, hey.' Evan nodded and gave his neighbour another smile that didn't quite reach his eyes.

'Don't worry, Mrs Winters' he told her, moving away from her outstretched arm an towards his car that he was eager to get into. 'Have a good day!' he called to her, before closing the car door on the woman as she waved goodbye to him and began to walk back towards her own house.

'Families these days' she mumbled to herself, shaking her head slightly and letting out a disheartened tut. 'Everything is so Jeremy Kyle'

x-x-x-x

Alex remained at the window for a couple of moments after Gracie Winters had retreated back into the comfort of her own home. Her phone lay forgotten on the windowsill and she was now picking at her lip, her thoughts going a mile a minute. It was painfully obvious that Evan was keeping something from her - that much an idiot could deduce - but what exactly? The answer was nagging at her but there was no possible way it could be true. There must have been something she had missed in either the conversation she had just overheard or the one with Mrs Winters yesterday. But there was definitely something that wasn't adding up.

Being the analyitical sort of person that she was, Alex grabbed a pen and paper from one of the tables in the living room and curled up on the chair to make a list. What did she know? She was certain that this wasn't a little secret that she would find out in time if she were patient - this wasn't what she was getting for christmas or a nice little surprise that Evan had planned. This was a secret that Mrs Winters had nearly given away that she _really _shouldn't have. But what?

On the blank sheet in front of her, Alex began to write down what she knew.

- Thought I was Es daughter

- Secret I'm not supposed to know

- Keeping something from me

Her list stopped there and Alex stared down at it. Her mind tried to think of something, _anything__, _that was relevant but there was nothing obvious. To anyone else, she would be telling them that the answer was clear; there had been nothing else that could be seen as revealing that Mrs Winters had said and the answer was staring her in the face. But to Alex, this was her life and there was no possible way that Evan - her _godfather _Evan - could be her biological Dad. It wasn't possible. And it wasn't happening. Surprising herself, Alex didn't panic and she was pretty sure because the idea was completely foreign and alien to her that she didn't even accept it, rather looked down at her neatly written list with cold disconnection. Without processing what she was doing, she found herself making her way to Evans office and opening the door that he always kept open.

_'There's no secrets between us, Lex. What's mine is yours'_

She knew where she was heading for and the folder nearly labelled 'Alexandra' made its way into her hands. It was a folder that contained everything that she had ever made for Evan (that could fit in a folder, anyway) and photo copies of all her important information. Tim and Caroline has always been very cautious when it came to Alex; copies of all her records were made and given to Evan. As high profile lawyers that dealt with the very scum of the earth, they knew that their job was high risk and if anything were to happen to them, they wanted to know that Evan had everything he needed which was another purpose of Alex's file that now sat in her hands. Although she had, at one time or another, seen most of the files that were held in the folder, she had never been allowed to look through it herself. Evan had always told her that it had been arranged in chronological order and the slightest movement of one paper to the wrong place could be disasteros. Alex had never questioned this and had waited patiently as Evan had made a show of handing her one item at a time and the painstakingly slotted it back into its rightful place.

Now, Alex flipped through the contents of the folder, glancing over her more recent school reports and certificates of achievement until she came to her hospital records of when she was a baby. These showed when she was beginning to do things, how her weight was progressing and the finally - her birth certificate.

7.1.96

Alexandra Elizabeth Price

Female

Caroline Price nee Blackfield

Evan White

And there it was. The familiar, neat signature of her 'godfather' sat nicely alongside the signature of her mother. It seemed like hours before Alex could tear her eyes away from the paper in her hands and she was sure that she could have been staring at it for several more if it hadn't been for the shuffle of keys, slam of the door and the call of 'where are you, Scrap?' coming from the hallway. 'I finished way earlier than I thought' he called out again, clearly moving through the rooms of the flat looking for.

'What're you doing in here?' his tone was more interested than annoyed as he saw that his office door had been pushed open. The familiar face of Alexs' _father _appeared around the door and he looked at her with a wide grin, waiting for her answer.

The grin quickly slipped from his face when he saw her tear streaked face, flashing eyes and the incriminating piece of paper that was held in her hands.


	7. Leave Right Now

**A.n. Thank you for all your lovely reviews! And your get well soon's! I'm feeling a lot better now (Thank God!) and so updates should be regular again! Thanks to the wonderful Elle for our nightly writing sessions that have pushed this chapter along quickly and to all of you for reading! I was going to extend this by quite a lot, but I passed my theory test this morning and wanted to celebrate by posting this chapter early, so it's all going to go in the next chapter. **_  
_

**As usual, if you have a moment, please review this little chapter. **

**And. Enjoy. **

**MBRB'xoxo**

_I think I'd better leave right now_  
_Before I fall any deeper._  
_I think I'd better leave right now;_  
_Feeling weaker and weaker._  
_Somebody better show me how_  
_Before I fall any deeper._  
_I think I'd better leave right now._

__**_Leave Right Now - Will Young_**

Silence slithered between the pair, filling the space that stood between them. Like a roach, it crawled into every crevice of the room until there was nowhere left for it to infect. The small office suddenly appeared much larger to Alex and it struck her that Evan didn't seem all that close to her anymore. In fact, the space that could be crossed in a couple of strides was now a deep ravine; an area that she no longer wanted to be in.

'Lex-'

'Don't. Don't you even dare'. Even to her own ears, her tone sounded far more vicious than she had expected. There hadn't been many times in her life that Alex had felt the deep anger that she was feeling now. Come to think of it, she didn't think she could ever recall feeling the emotions course through her body as intensely as they were now. This wasn't just anger. This ran much deep than anger. _Anger _she would have been able to cope with. It was the fact that it was mixed with a heady dose of deep betrayal and burning bewilderment that made it hard for Alex to even consider trying to calm down. Evan, for once, didn't seem to know what to do. This in itself was something new for her. Evan _always _knew what to say, what to do. In sticky situations the Lawyer deeply set within him made an appearance and the situation was always talked round to suit him with a few carefully composed phrases and well planned persuasive smiles. But the expression on his face that his features had twisted into was one that Alex had never seen before; a cross between ice cold shock and ... was that fear?

'Tell me this isn't true'. The words spilled from her mouth and the futile hope that this was all a sick and twisted joke flared within her. But one look at the face of the man in front of her confirmed that there was no joke being played and he really was a stranger to her now.

'Lex, I - '

'You're my Father?' She couldn't even bring herself to say the more intimate word of 'Dad'. That role had already been filled by Tim Price and there was no chance that she would ever be able to think of Evan as a Dad to her. He was a biological father - nothing more. Evan looked as if he were going to ignore her question, pain written across his face but after the intensity of Alexs' stare increased, he reluctantly gave an almost imperceivable nod. A sob ripped from Alexs' throat and she realised that there were tears falling from her eyes and marking her cheeks with unsightly tracks. She didn't care.

'You and Mum. You were _together'_. It wasn't a question - she didn't need the grubby details - more a thought that she was voicing to confirm to herself that this was really happening. Her eyes became unfocused and her stare dropped from the face of Evan and down to the floor, unseeing. Evan stepped forward slightly so that he was now in the room instead of in the door way and hovered around, unsure of what to do. He thought it best not to disturb Alex when she was clearly deep in thought trying to wrap her young head around the earth-shattering information. His fingers flitted over the hem of his jacket and he crossed then uncrossed his arms far too many times, trying to find a position that didn't make him feel so damn exposed. The ticking of the clock that hung on the wall behind Alexs' head was the only sound that broke the silence of the room and it wasn't until the third hand had travelled around the clock face twice that Evan considered speaking to her and breaking the deep thought that she was evidently in. As it happened, he didn't need to. Just as he was shifting his weight from one leg to the other and swiping one hand over the back of his neck, Alex's head shot up and she focused her attention on him once more.

'Does Dad know?' she asked, voice low. Evan felt a shot of discomfort race through him for the thousandth time. He knew that she would have questions and the she deserved answers but the thought that he would actually have to answer them made him uneasy.

'No. He never knew a thing' he said, eye pleading for understanding but knowing that he would get none. Without leaving a beat after his answer, she asked her next question.

'How long?'. It struck Evan dumb for a second and threw him off what little track he had left.

'Wh - What do you mean?'.

'You know exactly what I mean' there was the poison bitterness back in her voice and a flicker of pure hatred passed over her face so brief that it may never have been there. 'How long where you screwing my Mum?' The harsh terminology cut at him.

'Only a couple times, Lex' he pleaded, hoping that he would be able to do some serious damage control but he became painfully aware of his colossal mistake straight away.

'HOW LONG?!' The scream ripped from her and Evan knew that he would be telling her no more lies. He should have known that Alex, his little Scrap, knew him inside out. Or at least she had_ thought _she had. None-the-less, lying to her know was pointless and she was able to tell by the way he slipped a hand into his right pocket and the flicker of his eyebrow that he was lying. He never knew that his eyebrows where his tell.

'A couple months ... a year maybe. No longer than that' The answer left her breathless and she suddenly wished that she had been able to swallow his lies.

'A...year?' She wasn't sure what she had been expecting - a month maybe. Two? Three? But a year? It hadn't really occurred to her that the sordid little affair may not have been so little after all. The idea that the pair had been together behind her Dads back for all that time made her stomach twist and churn. Evan, to his credit, looked as shamefaced as a man possibly can, his head hung and his eyes downcast.

'It just happened' he feebly explained. As it turned out, that was the wrong thing to say. Alex let out a bitter jolt of laughter and her face contorted into mock understanding.

'Oh, it just 'happened'. That makes everything _so _much clearer. You just fell into bed with my _MOTHER_, the wife of your _best friend _for a year or two, getting her pregnant in the mean time. Oh. Happens all the god damn time' she spat at him. Since she had woken up this morning, the girl in front of Evan had changed from a relatively innocent, easy going child to what could only be described as a woman scorned and he was quickly finding out that hell really does hath no fury like.

'How could you do that to someone? Sneak around behind your best friends back with his wife? How can you look him in the face knowing that he thinks your child is his?' His answer didn't come immediately. Instead, he carefully considered her questions and thought about all the times that the guilt had nearly forced him to tell Tim the truth. Birthdays. Christmasses. Family outings. There had been so many times that he had nearly pulled Tim to one side and told him that the most precious thing in his life wasn't really his at all. But the very thought of crushing Tims world in such a manner always held off the thought for a little while longer. After all, it wouldn't just be Tim that would be effected if he were to tell the truth; Caroline would surely loose a husband. Her moral character would be tainted which could potentially impact on the career that she had fought so hard for. Alex would become another child that fell under the broken home bracket and would loose all trust in her Mother and 'God father'. No. He had never been able to do it and so instead, had tried to bury the Truth with the Past but, as he was now finding out, Time had been pushing them both to the surface all along.

'It's not something I'm proud of, Lex. I regret it every single day. Caroline was intoxicating to me. Tim was working all the time and she was so lonely - _we _were so lonely. When she found out she was pregnant - ' Evan let out a small puff of disbelieving laughter as he relived the moment she had told him the news ' - we didn't know what to do. She loved - _loves - _Tim so much and we knew that it would destroy him. We couldn't do that to him so we decided it would be best if we were to stop the whole thing dead. Let it all go and let them both have the family that they had been trying to build for so long. She wanted you so much.' Alex heard the sincerity bleeding through, especially in his last words, and she had to focus on stopping her eyes allowing any more tears to fall.

'Then why is your name on my birth certificate?'

'I don't know. Honestly. Caroline did it without telling me. The first I knew about it was when she was handing it to me and telling me that I cannot ever let Tim see it.' The fragility in Alexs' tone as she questioned him was a stark contrast to the bold questions she had asked him previously and it cut him a little deeper to hear the vulnerable girl creeping back in. 'It was never definite that you were even mine. We weren't sure'. Alex looked him square in the eye, her jaw set.

'It's not certain?' she asked. Evan shook his head, hoping that she was calming down a little.

'But it's more than likely? You're almost positive?'

Evan nodded his head this time.

'Tim wasn't around much...It's possible but...no. I don't think you're his' he told her. The amount of times he had tried to do the maths another way so that it would work out Tim really did have the daughter he had always wanted, but no matter how many different events he factored in, it always ended up that the chances were slim to nothing. Alex took a deep breath and a moment to process what she had been told. Then, quite unexpectedly, she shook her long hair away from her face and cleared her throat a little.

'Right' was all she said and then made her way past a surprised Evan and to the bedroom she had claimed as her own.

'Lex?' he asked after her, dumbfounded by her sudden exit from the room, but he was met with a door being calmly closed in his face and a voice coming through from the other side.

'Leave me, Evan. Just ... leave me'

Evan, unsure of what to do for the best, found himself respecting her wishes and retreating to the comfort of the living room after having been stood in the hallway outside her room for a moment or two. He could hear the dulcet tones of Adele creeping under her door; her dulcet grieving tones singing about the loss of love and the "moving on" process stuck him as far too ironic an he supposed that Alex must have had the same thought because the track was soon changed to the safer option of Duran Duran and Girls on Film. He wasn't sure how long he was waiting or what he was really waiting for, but by the time Alex emerged from her room he had tidied up the kitchen and living room and had started on some of lighter paperwork that he had to do - if you could really call any of the paperwork that he did as a lawyer 'light'.

The sound of her bedroom door opening surprised him, but not as much as the bag that was held tightly in her hand and the coat that was draped over the crook of her arm.

'Alex...?' he asked, voice faltering and unsure.

'I have to go, Evan.'

'Go where?'

'Back to Manchester. Home.' She had thought on the idea for a long time and had eventually decided that she couldn't be in the same flat with him at the moment, no matter how lavish that flat just so happened to be. The thought of being confined in the same space as him seemed to suffocate her and she knew that she just had to get back to Manchester. Back to Gene.

'How're you going to get there?'

'The train'

'How're you going to do that? You don't have a ticket. You don't have any money.' It was clear that she had her mind set on going and like her Mother, once she had an idea in her head there was no going back. But he had to try.

'I think it's the least that you can do' was all she said. She was met with a confused looking Evan, a crease between his brows. 'Oh come off it, Evan. It's nothing to you. Just give me a couple of pounds to pay for my train ticket and I'll be gone, okay?' she was calm, almost completely distant from him and it slashed at his heart a little more.

'You're not going to tell you Father, are you?' he knew it was selfish an probably completely the wrong thing to say, but he just had to know. Cold eyes met his and a hand was held out for money.

'No. I wouldn't be able to break his heart like that.' Her thinly masked point was clear to Evan and so with a sigh, he pulled his wallet out from his back pocket and handed her a couple of notes which she took without any expression.

'Thank you. I'll post you the change' she told him coldly and then shifted so that she could fish her purse out of her bag and slip the crisp notes into it.

'That's not necessary, Lex'. Alex paused.

'I'll post you the change' she repeated. She didn't want anything from Evan. Not any more. With that, she pulled her bag onto her shoulder again, leaning slightly to one side under the weight of it, and made her way over to the door. She only hesitated for a moment before closing the door behind her and leaving Evan in a flat that had never seemed so silent and lonely.


	8. Gives You Hell

**I know that this one has been a bit slow to start, but it's _finally _getting into it and I can't wait for you all to read what I have planned for Alex to get up to and hear your thoughts! Thanks to Elle for her forcing me to write ;) I hope you're all having a good Christmas build up and are feeling merry :) **

**As I say every chapter, enjoy! **

**MBRB'xoxo**

_Now where's your picket fence love? _**  
**

_And where's that shiny car? _

_And did it ever get you far? _

_You seemed so tense love. _

_I've never seen you fall so hard. _

_Do you know where you are? _

_**Gives You Hell - All American Rejects**  
_

Hand out. Hail a taxi. Small talk. "I'm never going back there". Payment. Black cab lost in a sea of blackness. Station. Shoved. Pushed. Tripped. Cursed. Pulled. Bashed. Battered. Sit. Moving... Calm.

Her eyes didn't move from the world that was zipping past her, her brain unable to take in any sort of detail before the sight was gone from her forever, replaced with an equally temporary view. The train stopped and started but there was a strange calm that surrounded the girl in the third carriage. She'd chosen a double seat without a table in an attempt to avoid anyone sitting next to her but she knew it would be in vein before she had even sat down. She had never made the journey from London to Manchester on the train - she had never needed to - but it didn't take a detective to know that it was bound to be a busy route and a stranger was likely to become a companion, if only for a while. The passing of the city was hypnotic. Building after building disembodied by only the occasional splatted of green; a park here, a tree there. It struck her that she really had grown up in a concrete jungle; a suffocating maze of sky-high buildings and highly-polished glass. Was it any wonder that there were so many eccentrics wandering around the capital city adding to England's reputation of being bizarre and quirky? Who could blame the captives for loosing grip of reality when confined to a city that never sleeps and never stops. Even the most stable of men can break when they have no rest.

Alex felt like she hadn't slept for a month. The day had taken its toll but she couldn't take her eyes off what was happening outside. Cityscape starting to be pulled back into the past and fields appeared with quaint cottages and animals dotted along the landscape. Trees and hedges and rivers and farms. It was the breath of fresh air that she hadn't realised she was craving.

"Cor, it's brass monkeys out there". A voice from beside her finally succeeded in dragging her attention away from the passing view and Alex started, not realising that anybody had even claimed the seat beside her. Looking over the elderly gentleman that was now next to her, she calmed herself a little. He was a kindly looking man with a shock of white hair and laughter lines that dared anyone not to instantly be fond of him. His gnarled hands rubbed together against the cold that he had just escaped from and he shifted in his seat to ensure his comfort.

"Should have worn a scarf" he added almost to himself, tutting lightly at his own mistake and then turning his attention back to Alex. "You don't mind me sitting here do you? Only there's not much room". It was only then that Alex glanced around the carriage and realised that it had filled considerably since she had last been out of her bubble of thought.

"Oh no, of course not" she gave him the friendliest smile that she could muster but was perfectly aware that it didn't reach her eyes. But then again, she couldn't bring herself to care too much.

"Where're you off to then? A young thing like yourself. You'd have had a chaperone in my day". His cheery wink managed to coax a ghost of a laugh from Alex and she found herself thankful to the old man for lightening her mood even if it were only by an iota.

"Manchester" she told him. "I'm going home".

"Your accent doesn't say that Manchester is your home" he questioned, a little puzzled. Alex gave him a half smile.

"It wasn't, but it is now. London doesn't seem as welcoming anymore, somehow". The man nodded with a wistful sigh and Alex could see her words reflected in his expression. A sort of longing crept into his voice and his attention turned to look just past Alex and out the window as he spoke.

"It's strange how that happens, love. One day you can't imagine being away from the place that you love and the next... Well. The thought of it makes your stomach twist" His eyes met hers again. "But don't worry. Time heals all wounds as they say, and one day you'll find yourself curious. Is it the same? Does it miss me? And you'll be back there at some point, wandering the streets that you used to know" He gave her a smile that brushed away the pain that laced his words and Alex felt her heart ache for the stranger that was sat beside her. She didn't know what he had been through to find himself a man with no home town, but she felt a connection with him that made her feel a little less lonely. His words drifted around her head for a moment and she mulled them over carefully, allowing a pause in the conversation. The silence made the man unsure that she was going to respond at all but he waited for her, sniffing quietly against the chill that was only now beginning to thaw from his nose.

"And did it?"

"Did it what, love?" he was unsure what she meant and there was a curious little line now between his brows. Interest.

"Did it miss you?" He thought about it for a while, relived the day that he had decided to go back. He'd visited the town that he had been born in and walked the paths and lanes that he had once known as well as he had known himself. The shops had changed hands. The lanes had become roads. The walls had been repaired and no longer crumbled in the same welcoming way that they always had. Things looked new in a place that had always looked so old and he had never felt more like a stranger than he did that day. He hadn't been back since; it was too painful.

"No. No it didn't" he shook his head sadly and Alex resisted the urge to reach out and lay her hand over his. A voice came over the tanoy calling out the name of the next station which seemed to bring the man back from the past with a sigh that brushed away the memories and left him with the smile that he had first greeted her with.

"That's my stop next" he told her, pointing upwards slightly to indicate the station that the voice had just said.

"That was a short journey" Alex didn't want him to leave quite yet. He was being so kind to her and she was intrigued to hear more from this mystery man that had broken her from her sullen staring contest with the world.

"I don't tend to travel far these days. Stick to what you know" he gave her another wink. "I can't go gallivanting around the country nowadays like you young things. Besides, I did enough of that when I was a lad. It's time I hung up my travelling hat". Alex laughed lightly as she felt the train beginning to slow. There was so much that she wanted to ask this captivating stranger but her dwindling amount of time to ask him in was causing her thoughts to jumble. Before she had the chance, he was rising to his feet and taking a shuffled step out into the gangway of the carriage.

"Lovely to talk to you, dear. Just remember though, sometimes it's good to move on. Take your memories and fly." His last word was accentuated with a waved hand in the air and an expression that lit up his entire face. Alex wondered what story his words hid and wished that she had more time to ask him, but instead she found all she had time for was a wide smile and a "I will. Thank you". He turned and began to make his way down the aisle towards the electric doors. People followed behind him and blocked him from view a little but Alex knew that she couldn't let him go without asking something that she knew would haunt her if she didn't take the opportunity now. Standing a little, she moved around so she could see him again.

"Wait!" she called out and saw him turn. "What's your name?"

The mans' face changed from one of question to a gentle smile .

She was never sure if he answered. If he did, his name was lost in river of people that was flowing between them, catching and trapping it from her forever. A woman with a child propped on her hip had moved in front of him as he had sent her his last smile and she hadn't been able to see if he had even opened his mouth to answer her. Maybe he hadn't even heard her question. She would never be sure but it would take a long time for her to forget her mysterious stranger.

Settling back into her seat, her mind remained on him for a while and she stared back out the window for a while lost deep in thought about all the those that have been forgotten by people and places they once knew so well. Would Evan be one of those people? She certainly didn't want to see him again and she didn't know how she would ever be able to forgive him for the lies that he had told. It seemed that their whole relationship that she thought had been so strong was based on a foundation of lies that was now cracking and crumbling beneath her feet, leaving her unsteady and unsure. Would Evan ever be a part of her life again? She knew that she would never forget him but would be become someone that she simply used to know? Would he be a figure of her past that she would think on occasionally with an indifferent cool?

She didn't want to dwell on it. Evan didn't deserve the time that she was spending thinking about him and so she pulled her mobile phone out of her pocket and typed out a text that was then sent to her most used contact.

_Meet me at the train station in 15 minutes? Please? I need to see you. I'm coming home. xxxx_

x-x-x-x

It was as she saw him waiting for her, shoulders hunched and hands buried deep in pockets, that she realised that her feelings for Gene were a lot stronger than she had first anticipated. She knew that she had never felt as she did about another boy, but the sight of him waiting for her in the bitter cold made a lump rise in her throat and her eyes to well with tears. Her bag seemed heavier now than it has when she had left Evans now the adrenaline rush had gone from her body and it slowed her down more than she had expected as she pushed her was through the crowds of people coming off the train and headed towards Gene Hunt; her pillar. He stood near the side of the platform with a long coat on and the very scarf that kept on being passed between them wrapped around his neck. It struck her that he had dropped whatever it was he was doing to come and pick her up from Piccadily station on a Sunday afternoon. A surge of emotion ran through her and she caught his eye across the crowd, a smile splitting across her face. It was a smile that he did not match. His face was the picture of concern, his shoulders tense and his eyes trained on, boring into her to see what the hell had made her come back from London so early. He had heard so much about the saintly Evan that whatever it was that had caused her to flea from him must have been something pretty damn bad.

Gene moved away from the wall that he had been stood by and walked over to her. Although only a teen, the river of people parted for him; there was no way that any one of them would have been able to walk into Gene and come of the victor. Reaching her, he took the bag that was weighing her down from her instantly and then took her chin in his other hand. He turned her face from side to side quickly, looking for any bruising or marks that had been made on her gorgeous face - he swore to God if anyone had hurt Alex then Evan would be a deadman.

"Gene..."

"You're not hurt?" he asked her gruffly.

"No. Gene - "

"You're sure" he was still turning her face, trying to make sure that she hadn't hid any marks beneath makeup, but as far as he could tell, her skin was as flawless as it had always been.

"I'm sure". Her gentle voice that hid nothing seemed to reassure Gene and he let out a sigh of relief and let go of he chin, bringing his hand up to hit the end of her nose lightly and then wrapped his arm around her shoulder, pulling her into his side protectively and guiding her out of the train station.

"Come on. You're telling me everything. Every bloody detail, you hear me?" Alex nodded and leant into him a little further. The wool of the scarf that was so familiar to her tickled her face slightly but the strong scent of it made her smile a little. It was something that they had passed between them for the last couple months since they had been together. When she was cold, he gave it back to her. When he was cold, she gave it back to him. It no longer belonged to him but rather to them both and it was an arrangement that, although never actually spoken of, made them both very happy. With his arm around her shoulders now providing a comfortable weight that worked to ground her, she felt safer than she had for a long time. With Gene, it didn't matter if every person that she had ever known turned out to be someone that they appeared not to be. She could be in a world of thieves and crooks and liars and snakes and it wouldn't matter as long as Genes' arm was slung around her shoulders and she was anchored to his side. This really was home.

x-x-x-x

The calm that had washed over Alex on the way to the little M and S cafe that they now found themselves at was long gone. Her blood was boiling and she was having a hard time keeping her voice at a suitable volume. Gene was sat opposite her with a mug of tea firmly held between his hands, a plate with what remained of his biscuit selection beside him. Alex had ordered a latte that remained untouched in front of her but she stirred it vigorously none-the-less as a way of keeping herself calm - or trying to at least.

"So I listened to them. But they weren't really making any sense and I didn't know what she was on about. She kept apologising and apologising and _apologising_. But I didn't know what for" - she let out a small bitter laugh - "and he kept going on about how I didn't know and it was okay and he should have told her that I didn't know and it was all alright". Gene, who had tried to follow her story as best he could, found himself completely lost. Evan and some woman had had a conversation with Alex. And then a conversation without Alex. About Alex? But it was okay but she was sorry? He wasn't really following but had tried to let Alex keep going in the hopes that he would catch on to what she was trying to tell him eventually. He had thought, when she text him, that something terrible had happened. He had imagined muggings, fights, tears, arguments, bruises on her pretty face. But she _seemed_ okay physically. But she had been talking for a good ten minutes and he still hadn't a clue what had made her leave the saintly Evan.

"Price...what was he on about? What had he done? Or she done? Or you done?". Not knowing was driving him insane so he just _had _to interrupt. Alex looked up from the cold latte that she was still stirring and at Gene. She didn't realise how much she had been rambling, her thoughts had just been all over the place ever since she had left London. Taking a deep breath, she tried to get back - and stay on - track.

"They were talking about me. When Mrs Winters had said something about Evan being my Dad, she hadn't made a mistake. Evan had told her that he was my Father but she didn't know that I didn't know... if you know what I mean". She knew that it wasn't her finest hour for being articulate, but Gene seemed to be following. Kind of.

"But why had he told her that? He was pretending to be your Dad? That's sick!" Gene seemed disgusted at the thought of Evan telling all his neighbours that Alex was his child, but Alex shook her head.

"When I heard them talking the next day, he was saying that it was okay - I hadn't taken any notice. Well I hadn't. Why would I? I thought she was just some woman who had made a mistake. But it turned out she hadn't. I went to Evans office and looked through his files and... and... " she realised that there were tears falling silently down her cheeks. She still didn't want it to be true and it still made her blood pressure rise to think what Caroline and Evan had done to her Dad. She wiped the tears away with the back of her hand furiously. She wasn't going to let the cheating, lying pair make her cry. Not a hope in hell. "I found by birth certificate. It had Evans name on it. Him and Mum had an affair and he's my real father." Gene was surprised how her tone had gone from vulnerable to strong so quickly. Her words knocked him over and he instantly understood why she had left London. Alex would never be able to stay in the same place that had betrayed her Dad in such a way. She had always been a Daddys girl and to hear something so devastating would have rocked her to the core. He was only glad that she had him to turn to; no doubt she wouldn't have wanted to call Caroline to pick her up from the train station. A moment of silence passed between them in which Gene wasn't really sure what to say. He didn't want to know the details of what had happened between Caroline and Evan - apart from anything else, he didn't feel it was his place to know the ins and outs of such an affair - and he didn't know what to say to console Alex. He knew her well enough to know that "it'll be okay"'s and "don't worry about it"'s would be useless and besides, who was he to promise her such things? Eventually he asked;

"What're you going to do?". Alex, who had turned back to stirring her coffee, met his eyes again. With a tone colder than any Gene had heard her use before and absolute defiance in her eyes, she replied.

"I'm going to give her hell".

**TBC...**


	9. True Colours

**A/N I hope that you all had an amazing christmas! This update had been a long time coming and was originally going to be a Christmassy little side fic but Christmas came and went and it turned into the next chapter. Sigh. So here is a mammoth of a chapter for you all and I really hope that you enjoy it! **

**As I say every chapter, if you have a moment please review but even if you don't... **

**Enjoy. **

**MBRB'xoxo**

**PS. No song at the beginning this time! I felt there were enough lyrics in the actual chapter. I'm spicing things up a little ;)**

**True Colours - Cyndi Lauper**

**Total Eclipse of the Heart - Bonnie Tyler **

**x**

Alex Price didn't feel like the same girl she had the week before. Since she had returned from London, things hadn't been the same at home and although Christmas was approaching fast, she couldn't seem to muster up the excitement that usually came so easily. She'd spent her time trying to distract herself from the impending day but found that it really wasn't possible to avoid the fact that the Christmas cheer and joy was being stirred up all around her. There was no ignoring the lights that constantly flashed her, the jingle bells that accompanied every song that was blasted from the radio, shops, cars, TV adverts. It was constant. It was depressing.

With her opinion of her family shattered, the urge to take part in the festivities was in the past and her friends that were forever trying to cheer her up were at a loss. They had all expected Alex to be uncontrollably excited about Christmas. She was usually the one who was encouraging them to release their inner child but they had found her sullen and resistant. Even Ray was immersing himself in the holiday more than Alex was which was something that nobody had anticipated. Whereas Shaz and Annie were concerned for Alex, Gene was going out of his mind in the best way that Gene Hunt knew; becoming poutey and irritable. He knew that had happened in London and to see his girlfriend changing so drastically wasn't something he was particularly enjoying. In fact, Alexs' behaviour was constantly on his mind and he decided that something really had to be done about it.

Another afternoon and Alex was, once again, sat in her room staring at her laptop screen watching statuses and photos scroll past her without really processing them. Days were blending into one another and she was perfectly aware that her friends were aware that she wasn't herself. But with two people that she had been able to trust her entire life turning out to be just another pair that she had been let down by, her inner turmoil was currently more important than her friends worry, as selfish as that sounded. Barely aware that she had given up any attempt at pretending to be interested in anything else, Alex stared at the lit screen with unseeing eyes. Her phone ringing was the only thing that managed to pull her out of her thoughts and a small smile graced her lips as she read Genes' name on her screen.

"Hello?" she answered.

"Alright, Lady Cheery?" she heard him ask and she couldn't hold back the eye roll, but his upbeat tone lifted her mood the tiniest amount.

"Not bad. How're you?"

"Yeah yeah not bad" he said quickly. "Listen. What're you doing tonight?" His question surprised her and there were a couple of "er's" before she actually answered.

"Nothing. Why?" Curiosity was rising in her as well as a strong suspicion that he wasn't actually going to reveal much to her. Gene had a rather frustrating habit of keeping information to himself.

"Good. Well you are now. I'll pick you up at 7 outside yours. Put on a nice dress or something. I don't know what you women do, but put your face on. I'll see you then" and with that he hung up leaving Alex unsure as to what was going on but wondering what it was that her boyfriend had up his sleeve.

x-x-x-x

At half six, Alex was dressed with her makeup carefully applied. Being uncertain of how she was supposed to dress, she had opted for a simple deep blue skater dress that flattered her figure and could be seen as semi-formal or casual. Sat in front of her mirror now with a pile of hairpins in front of her, she held back an annoyed yelp. She had taken her hair up and down and pulled it into all manner of styles, but nothing seemed to be going right. Down, it hung around her face in a way that she absolutely hated and no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't find a style that she was happy with when she tied or pinned it up. Taking the pair of scissors that she used to occasionally trim her hair with from the side, she took a few cautious snips at the tips of her hair that framed her face in the hopes of beating it into a look that she liked. A cautious snip soon turned into a more manic cut in the way that hair cuts given by oneself often do. With her anger rising within her, Alex felt all her stress from the last week building into a crescendo of frustration. The annoyance managed to channel itself through her scissors and moments after she had been carefully shaping her hair, she was surrounded by long tendrils that covered her desk, floor and lap. The haze cleared and she finally looked closely at herself in the mirror. No more did she have long hair that passed her shoulders but a much shorter bob that sat above on shoulders in a choppy, hacked at mess. For a moment, she was in a state of shock that she had done such a thing, loosing control to the extent that she had physically hacked at her hair. Her eyes welled with tears that she fought to keep down and she internally screamed at herself to stay calm. Stay calm. Stay. Calm. With the scissors now warm in her hand, she returned to her more delicate way of snippng and began to try and find a way of shaping her mess of a head into something acceptable that did't make her look like an unloved childs doll. Decided that the only thing she would be able to do with it was a, fingers crossed, sleek bob, she set about evening out the length. A quick glance at the clock told her that Gene would be there in ten minutes or so and that she had bloody well better hurry up and she felt panic rise in her again but she swallowed it down and continued methodically cutting away. Brushing her hair down to ensure it was all the same length, she let out a deep breath. The girl sitting in the mirror was completely different to the one that had sat there a half hour before and she wasn't sure that she liked what she saw. She looked older, more mature somehow. It wasn't something that she had ever thought of having done - let alone doing herself - and if she had the chance she wasn't sure that she would again but, as she had learnt over the last week, she could not change what had been done and she was stuck with the sharp bob that she now had whether she liked it or not. She only prayed that Gene would. With a few more cuts and adjustments, she resigned herself to the fact that nothing more could be done and she stood up, brushing away the cut hair from her dress and glancing one more time in her mirror.

She would do.

Running a couple of minutes late, Alex darted downstairs and slipped on a pair of heeled ankle boots. As she sat down on the bottom stair to tie them, Caroline came out into the hallway.

"Where're you going?" her Mum asked her. With utter coldness, Alex replied shortly.

"Out"

"Out where?"

"Just out." Looking up from her shoes, Alex looked straight at Caroline with challenge in her eyes, lifting a hand to swipe a stray piece of hair from her face. With her no longer bending to tie her shoes, Caroline noticed Alexs' hair for the first time.

"What the hell have you done!?" Her voice rose a couple of octaves and her eyes were wide with shock. For the first time, Alex realised that cutting her hair short would infuriate her Mum - of course it would - and it would drive her crazy. Caroline had always loved Alexs' long hair and often said how pretty it was. Alex had to fight down a smile that threatened t cross her lips and she instead kept a cool and indifferent expression.

"Cut my hair" she said, raising one eyebrow with smugness, then turned and walked out the front door leaving Caroline furiously calling her name after her.

x-x-x-x

Gene was sat outside in his car waiting for her. She heard the music that was being played rather loudly being turned down when he saw her making her way down the path. When she opened the passenger door and slid into the seat beside him, she felt nerves tangling in her stomach. His eyes had followed her since she had appeared at her front door, first in appreciation and then in surprise.

"Hello you". She got no answer, just a set of eyes glued to her. Waiting for him to say something, Alex shifted slightly in her seat, uncomfortable under his intense gaze. The silence got too much for her and she was dying to know what he thought of the "new" her.

"Gene. Stop it. Do you like it?" Gene hadn't realised that he had been looking at her for so long and he finally met her eyes.

"It's ... so different" was what he managed to come out with. Alexs' heart skipped a beat and her stomach dropped. She knew it. She _knew _it. He hated it. It had been a stupid thing to do. Irrational. Foolish. Stupid stupid _stupid. _Her hand came up and self-consciously played with the ends of a section of her hair, her eyes dropped from his face to her lap.

"I don't know why I did it. I didn't mean to". She sounded so disheartened and Gene realised she had taken it as a bad thing. Reaching out, he placed a gentle hand over hers.

"Alex" she didn't look up. "Pricey" he said more firmly, lifting his hand and knocking underneath her chin quickly but with a little smile to make her look up at him. "I love it. It's very rocker girl, or whatever you call them". Relief washed over her and a small laugh escaped her lips.

"Rocker girl?" She hadn't thought of it like that. She had certainly never been described as rocky before. She was far from that but she decided that she liked it.

"Very sexy" Gene confirmed with a nod and the cheeky wink that Alex simply adored.

"Are you sure?" she asked him, still playing with the tips of her hair. Gene rolled his eyes and leant forward to drop a gentle kiss on her lips.

"Positive" he mumbled against her then pressed another kiss onto her lips. Pulling back, he reached over and turned up the volume of the radio that was playing a generic chart song with a heavy base then gave Alex another wink, whacked the car into first and accelerated away from the Prices' house.

x-x-x-x

Realising that they were taking a route that she had taken a couple of times before. She hadn't expected that they would end up here and it made her curiosity of the evening rise even more than it had already been. It didn't take long for them to arrive and her suspicions were confirmed that they were indeed heading to Genes' house and as he pulled up by the kerb outside, he looked at her with a look that was clearly trying to read her expression. Not quite sure what to say, Alex gave him a soft smile and waited for him to be the Master of Ceremonies that he was clearly planning to be for the evening.

"Come on, you" he told her, then opened the drivers door and climbed out his beloved red car. Alex followed his lead and then made her way over to where he was standing, his arm held out and hooked for her to take. She hadn't noticed in the car, but he had a blazer on over a pair of smart looking jeans and a shirt with an undone bowtie hanging around his neck, making for a smart-casual looking Gene that was handsomer than ever.

"Oh, I have a charming Gene tonight, do I?" she asked him with mock surprise but took his arm none-the-less.

"Indeed you do, Madam Nutty"

With a raised eye brow, she threw him a "Lucky me" and then allowed him to lead her up the path and to the front door where he stopped to fish a key out his pocket and unlock the door.

"Are your parents not in?" She asked him, puzzled. Managing to twist the key in the slightly stiff lock, Gene turned back to her as he pushed the door open.

"Not tonight" he told her with a smile and held the door open for her to pass. As she walked through the doorway, she was hit with the smell of food cooking; tempting wafts of some form of fish mixed with the unmistakable scent of a pasta sauce. It was a strange combination that made Alex slightly uneasy but it smelled delicious anyway.

"Get on through there then. Don't stand around here making the place look messy" he inclined his head towards the living room and she rolled her eyes at him but made her way through the doorway. There, the dining table had been pulled out and laid beautifully for two people. Gene made his way around her and pulled a lighter from his back pocket that she knew he always kept there. Lighting two candles that say between the seating places, he set them down and looked back at Alex.

"Turn the lights off then"

She did as he said and the looked at the room properly. The only light being provided by the two candles burning cheerily and the small amount of moonlight that managed to slither through the window panes, it looked like a delightfully romantic setting and Alex felt her stomach flip. It was so unlike her Gene Hunt to do such a thing but then, he had been doing more and more things that were taking her by surprise lately. She really was learning to expect the unexpected.

"It's beautiful, Gene" she told him honestly and gave him a soft smile from where she was standing. Gene made his way over to her and dropped a quick kiss on her forehead, ignoring her words. She assumed that he felt self-conscious of his blatant display of affection that he was half way through. Perhaps Gene Hunt surprised himself more than he surprised her.

"Hungry?"

"Very"

"Go sit down then" he told her, pushing her lightly over to the table and then walking out of the room and to the kitchen where the amazing smells were coming from. Sitting at the table in the Hunt household felt like a million miles away from the Prices'. There, the separate dining room had a formal feeling that she now realised must have intimidated Gene an incredible amount when he came to eat with her family. Although he had barely shown it, she mentally put herself in his shoes and cowered from the experience. The table in the middle of the Hunts' living room felt much warmer and more like a place for family to gather. Set to one side of the room, it was away from the main area of the living room but she could imagine Gene and Nim sitting and eating together in comfortable silence or talking about the days events.

Her thoughts were interrupted by Gene walking in with two empty plates balanced in one hand and two empty win glasses hanging by the stems in his other. Placing the plates and glasses down, he put one of each in front of Alex and the remaining two where he was clearly going to sit. Alex looked up at him with a small smile and raised eyebrows.

"Back in a sec"

True to his word, Gene came back with a large bowl of steaming muscles and placed it between them. Alexs' eyes lit up as she saw them. How he knew that she adored muscles she didn't know but they looked delicious sat there in front of her, tempting her in.

"They look amazing, Gene! I didn't know you could cook!"

"You just wait until the main course" he told her with a wink and then left the room again only to return with a bottle in his hand.

"Here you are. Practically cost me both my balls, this. I don't care if you don't like it; you're drinking it" Standing beside the table, Gene pulled her glass a little closer to him and filled it with the sparkling champaign that he was holding.

"Bollinger?! Jesus Christ, Gene!" Alex was amazed. She did, in fact, love Bollinger but it was the last drink that she had ever expected to be drinking with Gene. For a start, he didn't strike her as the Bolly type and then there was the fact that it did, as he had so delicately put, cost a bloody arm and a leg.

"Well you've been miserable lately. Thought I'd treat you" he told her as he finished filling his own glass and sat down opposite her. Alex felt a rush of love pass through her. A moment of silence passed as the candles lit the room in a soft glow.

"You really didn't have to do that" she said quietly. Guilt was coursing through her; she'd been so absorbed in herself lately that the effect it was having on the people around her just hadn't seemed important. In that moment, she swore to herself that she would make more of an effort to be the girlfriend that Gene Hunt deserved. Gene and Alex. Together again.

"Well I did it anyway" he replied to her, his tone equally as soft and his eyes downcast at his empty plate as if embarrassed at his thoughtful gesture. With a shake of his head, he threw away his quiet demeanour and reached over to pick a muscle from the bowl. "Besides, like your lardy-dah arse would drink anything but the very finest. Posh tart" Alex couldn't hold back the chuckle that built in her and she eagerly reached for a muscle too.

x-x-x-x

With her stomach full, Alex placed her knife and fork down at "5 o clock" and leant back in her chair slightly.

"That was absolutely incredible. You're culinary skills are bloody brilliant" she told him with a smile. Gene batted her comments away with his hand and shrugged.

"You know me, Pricicle. Full of surprised. Nothing I can't do. More champers?" he asked, tipping the bottle towards her nearly empty glass. Alex thought about it for a second and then nodded.

"Well you need to work on your taste for drinks, at any rate" she teased, nodding towards the beer that was sat in front of him. After a few sips of the Bollinger, Gene had announced that he couldn't "drink anymore of this fancy person shit" and needed "a real mans drink".

"We can't all have been born with a silver spoon and parents that splashed us with the most expensive crap on the market". Alex gave him a scolding look and sat up a little straighter in her seat.

"I was _not _born with a silver spoon! We're not even that rich! I can't help it if I have a palette for the finer things in life!" Gene let out a snort.

"Finer things? Bollocks. _That__" _he inclined his head to the bottle "is not the finer things. The finer things are a good cold pint and some simple bloody food".

"A pint? How common are you?" Alex played, her chin tilted up slightly so she was looking down her nose at Gene and her words annunciated perfectly.

"Common enough to never want to drink that stuff again. You're welcome to it. Go bathe in it, your Highness. Drown in it. Drink so much of the flaming stuff you turn into it. Just don't force it on me" Alex laughed, her pretence dropped momentarily before looking down at him once more.

"No class" she told him with a shake of her head.

"Alright, Lady Bolls. You sit there while I clean up the mess you've made" he told her as he took her plate and began to take it out to the kitchen. Alex remained where she was for a moment but found that knowing he was so close and yet not with her caused her to want to be near him desperately, so she too made her way to the kitchen where she saw him rinsing the plates under the sink. Slipping her hands around his waist from behind, she rested her cheek on his shoulder and pulled him a little closer.

"Dinner was lovely"

"So you've said" he told her, focusing completely on the washing up. Alex shifted her hand slightly so that she could run little circles over his stomach with the pad of her thumb.

"I mean it. It was delicious" She twisted her head and a kiss was dropped on his shoulder before she rested her head down again.

"Glad you thought so. I spent bloody hours slaving away in here". Alex smiled against him and gave his torso and extra squeeze in thank you. The evening had been exactly what she had needed; time away from her family and the spotlight on something so much simpler. Her and Gene. Nothing else.

Alex twisted her head against his shoulder so that she was facing the other way and looking over his shoulder a little so she could watch him methodically running the cloth round and round the dirtied plates. Out of the corner of her eye, a deep blue packet on the side next to the bin caught her eye and she looked over to see what it was. Labelled quite clearly was the Tesco logo and the description of delicious sounding muscles. Alex knew that they weren't exaggerating because she'd just eaten them. Pulling away from him slightly, Alex raised an eyebrow.

"Slaved away, did you?" she asked him.

"All day"

"Must have been hot in this kitchen"

"It was" Gene nodded in agreement.

"And tiring"

"Very" She pulled away from him quickly and slapped his shoulder blade.

"You flaming liar! I'm pretty sure you don't work in the kitchens of _Tesco_!" Gene turned to look at her and followed her finger that was pointing at the packaging. A very small snort of laughter escaped him and Alex couldn't help but let a giggle out. Walking over to the bin, she looked down into it and saw the packing for their main course and dropped her jaw.

"You little shit!" she yelled at him, laughter breaking through her every word.

"Worth a shot, Bolly" Gene winked.

x-x-x-x

With the washing up done and the kitchen cleared, Alex made her way over to the sofa and sat down whilst Gene lit another candle to give them a little more light. Kicking her heels off and leaving them by the side of the sofas arm, she curled her feet up underneath her and watched as he made his way over to the Ipod docking station and began to mess with it, apparently searching for a particular song. As the opening bars of the oh so familiar song started, Alexs face lit up.

"I love this song!" she told him as he turned to look at her and sat down beside her on the couch, his shirt opening slightly at the collar as he lay an arm along the back of the couch and relaxed.

"I know you do, you daft tart. I don't know why you love all this 80s crap so much but I'm willing to listen to it for one night if it puts a smile on your miserable face". With the hand that was lying along the sofa back, he reached down and tweaked her nose lightly, then ran the pad of his thumb fleetingly over her cheekbone. There was a moment of silence between them as the music played, filling the room and lulling them into an easy and romantic atmosphere. Alex glanced over at Gene and reached a hand up to wrap around his, gently lacing their hands together.

"Dance with me" she whispered. Gene, who had been watching her linking their hands together, pulled his eyes away to meet hers.

"I can't do that, Bols" he told her, his voice also quiet and soft. Alex cocked her head to the side slightly and looked at him inquisitively. Her fingers played with his, feathered touches slowly being dragged across his skin.

"Why not?"

"Gene Hunt doesn't dance"

_You with the sad eyes,_  
_Don't be discouraged,_  
_Oh I realize_  
_Its hard to take courage_  
_In a world full of people,_  
_You can lose sight of it all._  
_And the darkness inside you_  
_Can make you feel so small._

"Gene" His name was barely audible but there was something about it and the way that she now stood above him, his hand held in hers, that made his absolute determination not to dance crumble and he found himself being pulled up and a hand slipping around her waist.

_Show me a smile then,_  
_Don't be unhappy, can't remember_  
_When I last saw you laughing._  
_If this world makes you crazy_  
_And you've taken all you can bear,_  
_You call me up,_  
_Because you know I'll be there. _

With her body pressed close to his, Alex Price felt safer than she had in a long time. Together they stood in the middle of the dimly lit room and swayed. With one hand still clasped in his and the other draped lightly around his shoulder, she looked up at the man who was rapidly becoming the centre of her universe. The one person that could keep her grounded in a world that seemed so determined to throw her around. No words passed between them as the soft music played but his hand around her relaxed and she felt his unease slipping away, deteriorating as the steady rhythm of their dancing lulled his insecurities. Alex felt herself turn her head and rest it on his shoulder lightly, completely wrapped in the moment. Them. Him.

With her heels kicked off, she was shorter than him and her head was the perfect height to lean against him. Gene found the scent of her shampoo and conditioner mingling with her perfume filling his senses and he breathed in deeply, trying to get more of the beautiful smell of her. With her leant against him in the way that she was, he could feel the weight of her. A peaceful wave washed over him and, turning his head slightly, he pressed a soft kiss to her hair line, his lips remaining there for a moment reluctant to let her go. When he finally did, Alex lifted her head from his shoulder and gazed back up at him, her eyes glowing in the flickering light of the candles. A moment passed and she leant in, her eyes flicking from his eyes to his lips and back again, her intentions clear. Slowly - almost hesitantly - she kissed him. She didn't know what it was that made her so cautious about this kiss but there was a gentleness there that felt like she was holding back. Maybe it was the unusual mood of the room. Maybe it was the intensity of the moment. She didn't know. But as Gene let go of the hand that held hers and brought his arm around her to pull her closer, she felt the strangeness melting away and be replaced with pure tender passion that drifted through their kiss and into the pair. Her arms came up to wrap around his neck, tugging him closer and deepening their kiss.

_And I'll see your true colours_  
_Shining through._  
_I see your true colours_  
_And that's why I love you,_  
_So don't be afraid to let them show_  
_Your true colours,_  
_True colours are beautiful,_  
_Like a rainbow._

As the music died away, Alex pulled back from Gene slowly and her eyes flickered open slightly. Through heavy lids, she looked from his lips up into his eyes that were trained on her. Shifting slightly and dropping her arms from around his shoulders so that her hands trailed down his arms and to his hands, she laced their fingers together and let out a small noise of content.

"Are you always going to be this romantic?" she asked him, her voice still quiet so not to shatter the mood. Gene let out a soft puff of laughter, his thumb tracing the base of her thumb lightly in a motion that Alex was acutely aware of.

"I wouldn't count on it, Bollinger. This is probably a once in a life time thing. Gene Hunt does not do romance" Alexs' lips quirked a little and she glanced down at their joined hands and then back at him.

"Gene Hunt, apparently, doesn't dance either. But he turned out to be very good at it" Gene rolled his eyes at her.

"Gene Hunt _doesn't _dance. He just makes exceptions for posh tarts that need a smile forced on them" The ghost of a smile passed over Alex and she dropped her eyes as they swayed again, this time to Total Eclipse of the Heart. Looking back up at him, Gene could see a sadness in her eyes that hadn't been there moments before.

_Turnaround._

_Every now and then I get a little bit angry,_

_And I know I've got to get out and cry. _

_Turnaround._

_Every now and then I get a little bit terrified,_

_But then I see the look in your eyes._

"Thank you" she whispered. Her words were nearly inaudible but Gene heard them as if she had screamed at him. As she brought one arm up to wrap around his shoulders again, the gratitude that evidently laced the two simple words burned into him. and he knew that everything had been worth it just to see her looking up at him now with a smile dancing on the corners of her lips, her arms wrapped around him and her body close to his, swaying in time with the music. For this, he would dance across this universe and the next.

There were no more words passed between them as Gene leant down and captured her lips in his once more as the music played quietly in the background, now unnoticed as the couple involved themselves only in eachother.

_And I need you now tonight._

_And I need you more than ever._

_And if you'll only hold me tight,_

_We'll be holding on forever._

_And we'll only be making it right'_

_Cause we'll never be wrong. _

_Together we can take it to the end of the line,_

_Your love is like a shadow on me all of the time._

_I don't know what to do,_

_I'm always in the dark._

_We're living in a powder keg and giving off sparks._

_I really need you tonight._

_Forever's gonna start tonight._

_Forever's gonna start tonight._

_**TBC... **  
_


	10. Crazy Screwed up Lady

**A/n I don't know if many of you are going to agree with the end of this chapter because it could be seen as pretty OOC but I've been planning it for a while and it's all going to be part of the storyline so bare with! :D This is just a short chapter and yes, it's still see at christmas because I got lazy over the holidays and so we're catching up on time now and so the next chapter will be present time :)**

** I hope that you're all having a good year so far and this one is dedicated to the lovely Nicola :)**** Enjoy! **

**MBRB'xoxo**

_She insists, _**  
**

_That everyone around that sees her gentle face will turn into stone. _

_Never speak, _

_To her or anyone who prays to just be broken like a wishbone. _

_We are weak... _

_I think you're gonna be okay you crazy screwed up la-a-a-a-dy, _

_I think you're gonna be okay you crazy screwed up la-a-a-dy, _

_I think you're gonna be okay. _

_**Crazy Screwed up Lady - Cosmo Jarvis**  
_

With two packages held tightly in her hands and the collar of her coat turned up against the bitter chill of the December day, Alex made her way along the path of the park that her and Gene had walked down so many times before. She wasn't exactly sure why Gene was so keen on the place and she'd never really asked him, sensing it was something he wasn't too eager to talk about, but there had been many times that they had been stuck for something to do and Gene had suggested that they take a turn around the winding paths of the park and the large lake that the land centred around. It was a place so peaceful that Alex always felt that she was leaving a little of her stresses at the large iron gates whenever she walked through them. Sure, she picked them up again on exiting, but that short time where she was unloaded and with Gene was a time that seemed heavenly.

Now, as she saw Mr Hunt himself waiting with his arms casually crossed over his body on a bench a little in the distance, she ignored the cold as much as she could and made her way over to the lone figure. The park was as abandoned as it was going to get on a Saturday, the occasional dog walker and parent taking their child for a stroll, but otherwise empty. Her pace increasing, she eventually came close enough to Gene to realise that he wasn't going to stand to greet her which earned him an eye roll and an unimpressed smile.

"Oi, you. You're supposed to stand when a lady approaches you. If I didn't have these in my hands, I'd smack you one" she told him, nodding down to the presents in her hands.

"I see no Lady." Gene winked at her with a very barely-there smile that only she would see, but stood none-the-less and threw a heavy arm around her shoulder. "Oh, there's one. More a upperclass tart though". With a kiss pressed to her temple, she wriggled out of his arms and sat down on the bench that he had just got up from, placed the packages down beside her and then reached up to the familiar scarf that was wrapped around his neck, making grabby hands.

"So predictable" he told her bluntly, but began to unwrap the scarf from around his neck anyway. Sitting beside her, he carefully wrapped it around her neck and tucked it under the lapels of her black jacket, watching her closely as she snuggled down and buried her chin into the already warm material of "their" scarf.

"I've been thinking of this the entire way here"

"Should have brought your own, you lazy mare" Alex giggled lightly.

"Why do that when I can just have yours? Preheated" she asked, managing to sound genuinely puzzled.

"Oh, still mine is it? Funny that because I thought you'd commandeered it" with an eyebrow raised, Gene gave her his most disapproving look that Alex seemed completely resistant to. Ignoring him, she bounced a little on the bench and picked up the two packages, holding them in her lap.

"Whatever, you. Shh. Let me give you your presents. I've been dying to all bloody December". Picking the larger of the parcels, Alex passed it to Gene and watched eagerly as he poked and shook it for a second. Without any distinct shape, he seemed unsure as to what the neatly-wrapped, undefinable present could be but he gave a grateful smile and began to rip open the paper. With the paper suitably torn away, Gene laughed at the soft toy that was in his hand. Not a small hidden laugh and yes, not a throw your head back bellow, but it was a carefree and genuine laugh that Alex heard rarely so the sound of it made her grin from ear to ear. Revealed was a golden, fluffy lion with a lopsided grin, slightly uneven ears, a mane that you would never be able to control and a tail that was slightly understuffed. It was one of those teddies that had that "cared for" effect that was gave it a friendly persona, one that you adored and wanted as soon as you saw it on the shelf even though it was a little ragged, a little messy, a little too loved. As soon as Alex had seen it, she knew that she had to get it for her Manc Lion, no matter how cheesy it was. She'd laughed the first time she'd heard Ray calling him by his ridiculous nickname but she couldn't deny that it had summed him up completely, and the nickname had been remembered and gradually loved by her, as the man himself had.

"You calling me a pussy cat, Pricicle?" he asked her, the little sparkle in his eyes made even clearer by the questioning eyebrows he gave her.

"No sirey. You're my Manc Lion, you idiot" she laughed, reaching out to stoke the toy lions mane for a second. "Do you like it?"

"I'm about 15 years past cuddly toys but I'll make an exception for this one," he gave her a little wink. "It's brilliant. Thank you, Lioness" he gave her a quick peck and then picked up the second, flatter package. "Can I open this one now? Looks a lot tamer". Alex nodded enthusiastically. She was praying that he liked what she had got him. She'd spent an age trying to think of the perfect present and had eventually come across something that she was sure Gene would like. She only hoped she was right. Tearing open the second present with the same boyish enthusiasm as the first, he stared down at the gift in his hand.

"Do you like them?" she prompted after a moment of silence. Gene looked up from the gift in his hands and nodded silently. Then, seemingly coming out of his momentary daze, he nodded, looking back down. In his hands were a pair of sleek black leather gloves. Not cheap or shiny-looking in the slightest, they were made of soft, supple leather that gave off that distinctive 'real' smell, they were tailored for Gene perfectly. Running them through his hands once then twice, he pulled them closer to his eyes as the winter light caught the leather around the cuff. Neatly stamped into the deep black, there was small but elaborate "GH" on the side of each glove sitting where the wrist bone would be. Slipping one glove on, he brought it up to inspect the perfect fit then looked over at Alex who had been watching him closely.

"How the bloody hell did you do this?" he asked, insistently with a gratefulness and tenderness that touched Alex. She smiled gently.

"Us Price girls are pretty popular in London, you know. I didn't just go to see Evan. I called in a favour that Mum was owed and voila. Do you like them?" she asked him anxiously. Gene looked at her like she was a crazed woman sitting before him.

"Are you kidding? I absolutely love them! They're...god, I sound like a bloody poofter. They're perfect. They're fantastic. I..." he seemed lost for words which was actually more than Alex had expected and she felt herself glowing with pride at having found the perfect Christmas gift for Gene. "Thank you" he ended simply, slipping the other glove onto his hand and then reaching up, capturing her face in his hands and pulling her to him for a kiss.

Pulling away with a final scattering of butterfly kisses to his lips, Alex grinned at him.

"You're welcome." She paused for a second then, "Come on then, where's mine!?" she demanded, the laughter in her eyes spilling down and tumbling from her lips. Gene rolled his eyes, used to his girlfriends more pushy ways. One of his large hands slipped inside his coat and pulled out a reasonably flat square box and a package that looked like a wrapped envelope.

"You're an absolutely bloody nightmare to buy for, you know. So you'd better like it" he told her, handing over the larger present of the two.

"Oh, sweetie I'm sure I will" she told him, excitedly taking the package from him and shaking it slightly, holding it close to her ear, before carefully peeling of the tape and pulling back the paper. Inside was a dark blue box with a silver jewellers name imprinted into the top. Letting out a little squeal, Alex lifted the lit off and looked down at the delicate silver chain that sat inside. With a little gasp, Alex took it out of it's box and lifted the bracelet for a closer look. Attached with a tiny silver links were six intricately detailed charms. Reaching over, Gene pointed them out to her, his hands that were so clearly manly dwarfing the small bracelet and Alex's small fingers.

"They all mean something, see. I know it's pretty girly to get it, but that one's a lion, for obvious reasons," he told her, pointing out a small charm of a lion in profile, his tail curled. "That ones because you're my Pricicle," he explained, pointing out a small stereotypical ice lolly, "that one's because you were dressed at that Egyptian Queen that slept with everyone for Halloween" - a little silver Egyptian Ankh with rounded edges hanging from the bracelet was pointed out - "and this one because you're into all that old music crap but now you've hacked your hair off, it kinda doubles as you being my "rock chick" thing." Alex was brought back to the moment of reassurance that he liked her new look as she looked down at the music note that he was now pointing to. "Then there's that one because, you know, I'd like to think we'll be together for a while. If I don't fuck it up, that is" Alex giggled, the infinity sign catching her eye and then turning to the small diamond that hung beside it.

"And that one?" she asked softly.

"That's because you're bloody expensive" he told her, his face dead pan but the humour in his eyes wasn't missed.

"Gene. It's honestly beautiful. I couldn't imagine something more perfect. Thank you so much" she wasn't sure that her gratitude really came across, but she hoped that he understood just how much she adored the stunning present that she had received. She glanced down at his hands that were still in the gloves that she had so carefully picked for him. "They look a bit measly in comparison now, don't they" she told him, her voice laced with only a slight joke. Glancing between the two gifts and the lion that sat in his lap, she felt a little disappointed in her choice of gift now. Gene lifted a finger and knocked her chin up slightly so that she was looking him in the eye again.

"Oi, you. These are the best thing I've ever got for Christmas. And I mean that. I really do. I love them" he told her. Alex smiled softly at her, glad that he seemed to be genuine. "But you're not finished yet" he carried on, handing over the envelope looking present. Alex gave a disapproving look and frowned at him.

"Gene, this is really enough. I don't need anything else. This is too much" she scolded.

"No" Gene replied, "this one needs explaining. Just open". Doing as he said, Alexs suspicions were confirmed when she opened the paper to reveal and envelope. Once she's sliced open the envelope, 5 crisp 20 pound notes were revealed. With a little gasp, Alex looked straight up at Gene and shook her head.

"Gene, what? I can't take this!" but Gene had already held up a hand to stop her talking any more.

"Right, you've been going on about it for the last couple weeks and I want you to be really sure about it, but when you've decided what you want and you're _sure_, I'll take you to get a tattoo. That money will cover it and you can take me out to dinner with whatever is left" he explained.

Alex sat in silence for a second before her face split into a massive grin. Since she'd been back from Evans and felt her world changing around her, she'd had an urge to change everything about herself and she'd mentioned to Gene numerous times that she now wanted to get a small tattoo somewhere on her body that could be easily hidden but that she would know is there. For Gene to bring her to get it done and to support her fully really touched her and she knew that her parents and Pete would have been dead against the idea, dismissing it straight away and telling her that she was ridiculous. Leaning over, she hooked a hand behind Gene's neck and pulled him closer, capturing his lips with hers gently. Her other hand sought out his and she laced their fingers together and held it in her lap, her thumb tracing small patterns at the base of his thumb.

"Thank you" she whispered to him, pulling back ever so slightly, her eyes lowered and fixed on his lips. Gene, in response, pulled her back to him and wrapped an arm around her waist, pulling her as close as he possible could and chasing away any of her thoughts of the chill in the air.

_TBC..._


	11. In The Shadows

**An. So this is a very short, appaulingly written chapter! I don't know what's wrong with me at the moment, but the next should be a lot longer and not so angsty and just generally crap! **

**Your thoughts would be greatly appreciated, as always! **

**MBRB'xoxo**

_No sleep. _

_No sleep until I'm done with finding the answer. _

_Won't stop. _

_Won't stop before I find the cure for this cancer. _

_Sometimes __I feel I'm going down, I'm so disconnected. _

_Somehow I know that I am haunted to be wanted. _

_**In the Shadows - The Rasmus. **  
_

The afternoon that had started quite innocently had ended up back at the Hunt household and, more specifically, in Gene's bed. With his Mother being out yet again, the pair had had the house to themselves and though unplanned, they had used it to its full potential. As her first time, Alex lay in the bedroom that was now so familiar to her, panic rising in her stomach. It had been a spur of the moment thing, the bite of the snow starting to fall driving them inside and an innocent kiss leading to...well...other things. As feelings that she couldn't quite pinpoint coursed through her, she looked up at Gene who stood buckling his jeans above her. He looked down at her tangled hair and slightly smudged makeup, an eyebrow raised and a smile on his lips that she was sure only she would be able to detect. The smile vanished as soon as he looked at her probably and he stopped what he was doing, instead perching on the edge of the bed that she was still lying in, one arm curled under the pillow beneath her head and the other curled close to her.

"Are you okay, Bollinger?" he asked her. She nodded trying to look as convincing as she could. It didn't work. "You're regreti-"

"No!" she interrupted him, not wanting him to think that she'd regretted a minute of it. "No" she repeated, softer this time now that she had his attention. "I just..." words wouldn't come and she sighed the paused, trying to word what it was she wanted to say. "I just didn't think that we'd move so quickly" Gene couldn't help but raise an eyebrow at her.

"It's been a fair few months, Alex"

"I know. I know. I just haven't.. well you knew that but..." she faded away without finishing her sentence, still unable to think properly about what had happened.

"I didn't mean to push you" he told he, lowering his gaze and feeling like an absolute prick. He'd thought that it was what she had wanted but the way that she was looking at him now with those big eyes and sullen expression said otherwise. Alex hadn't realised that she had been looking that way and the tone of Gene's voice made her realise that there were crossed wires. Reaching out to take his hand, she pulled it closer to her.

"I don't regret anything, Gene, are you crazy? No, I mean I just didn't wake up this morning thinking that I'd give you your Christmas present and then fuck you today, that's all" she explained, smiling. At her word choice, Gene couldn't hold back a burst of laughter and he looked from their joined hands up to her face that was smiling gently at him.

"You mean that wasn't my Christmas present?" he asked, trying to act the innocent that he so clearly wasn't. Alex rolled her eyes, pleased that the awkwardness that had been threatening to settle had been swiped away and she reached up to gently cup his cheek.

"Oi, you. Think yourself lucky you got the presents you did. That was just an added extra I guess" she told him, leaning forward to kiss him lightly before pulling back and glancing down at her top that had been left on the floor near his feet. His eyes followed hers and he saw what she was looking at and bent down to pick it up and hand it to her.

"Getting dressed then?"

"Don't sound so bloody disappointed" she said with an eye roll and then waited awkwardly as he kept on looking at her. "Could you,er... turn around?" For once, he surprised her by not making a 'witty' comment or complaining, instead shrugging slightly and getting up and making his way out the bedroom and to the bathroom, leaving her to sort herself out and get changed in peace.

"Don't take all day about it!" She heard being called from down the hallway and couldn't wipe the smile that graced her face because of it.

x-x-x-x

Leaving Gene was harder today than it was the others, and Alex felt her stomach drop a little as she gave him a deep kiss goodbye and watched as his little red car pulled away from the pavement. Pulling her key out of her bag, she slipped it in the lock and immediately heard someone on the other side preparing a lecture. With the door swinging open, she saw Caroline waiting to meet her with her hands firmly planted on her hips and a disapproving look pasted on her face.

"And where the hell do you think you've been?" Alex looked her up and down, already finding anger stirring within her. Over the last days, she'd found that even the sight of her mother got Alex riled up. With her opinion and levels of respect at an all time low, she paused for a moment, glaring at Caroline.

"Out" she said simply.

"Out? Alex, it's half 2! We've been phoning you all night!" Having not actually looked at the time since they went back to Gene's house,it came as a bit of a surprise that the hours had managed to slip away, but she didn't react, instead raising an eyebrow and giving a nonchalant look.

"Sorry. My phone was off" she said blankly and made her way to the stairs.

"Not so fast, Missy" Caroline called after her, making her stop and turn. She could see her dad standing in the doorway of the living room with his arms crossed. Disapproval sat alongside quite support for his daughter. Her dad had always been the far more lenient of the two and she had always felt that their connection was far stronger than that of her mother and her. She knew that Tim would not completely support her staying out late and not telling them where she was, she knew that he wanted her to be as independent and have as much fun as she could whilst she was young. Caroline ignored the look between her husband and daughter and plowed on. "You think that you can just waltz back in whenever you like and no one say a thing about it? You're 17 Alex, not 28. We've all been worried sick." Alex couldn't contain the eye roll that came in response to her words. Without bothering to reply, she turned on the bottom step and began to make her way up the stairs again. That was, until something Caroline had said processed with her. Slowly, she turned.

"'_We've _been worried sick"? Who is 'we'?" She had a feeling she new already.

"Evan" her mother said simply. Movement caught Alexs' attention and her eyes were drawn over to the doorway Tim was standing in. Evan was stood there with at least the sense of mind to look shamefaced, his eyes downcast and expression neautral.

"Oh. Yeah, I'm sure you were all _terribly_ worried" Alex eventually said, her lip curling and a small stab of bitter laughter spilling out.

"We were, Lex" Evan chipped in. Alex saw red. Moving down a step so she was that little bit closer, she stabbed a finger to Evans face.

"Don't you even think about talking to me" she snarled, then turned on her heels and stormed up the stairs to her bedroom, closing the door behind her with an impressive slam. She could hear their voices drifting up from downstairs, discussing what to do about her but that was a problem easily solved with her music blasting, drowning out reality.

Sliding her phone out of her pocket, she saw the familiar envelope telling her she had a message.

_Hey, lovely. I've not seen you for an age. Are you okay? School soon. Gah. Are you free at some point soon? I'm worried about you :( xxxx_

__The text from Annie made her stomach drop a little. She knew she had been abandoning the people that meant so much to her lately and she was now determined to set it right.

_I'm so sorry :( I've been such a wreck lately. Been a bit of a shit friend, haven't I! :( Tomorrow?! Me. You. Shazza. Shopping? Costas on me? ;) xxxxx_

Sending a text to Shaz straight after, she hoped that she would be able to make it up to the two girls in her life that she trusted with anything. Why she had been pushing them away, she didn't know. Perhaps finding out about her mum and Evan had had more of an effect on her than it should have, but it just felt like she didn't know anything for certain anymore. It was an uneasy feeling that she wasn't particularly fond of. And to know that he was downstairs now. Well... she's wasn't happy about it. Had he told Caroline that she knew? She guessed not but there really was no telling any more.

With thoughts spinning in her head at a mile a minute, Alex eventually managed to slip into a restless sleep, thoughts of Gene lulling her into a sense of safety.

_TBC... _


End file.
